Good Old Day
by Erulasto
Summary: When a rift in the time/space continuum is discovered, Spider-Man and his fellow crimefighters set out to rectify a recent controversial change in the continuity of the Marvel universe. Guest-starring the Fantastic Four, the New Avengers, and many more!
1. Chapter One

_Note: This story takes place after the events of _Civil War_,_ One More Day_, and _Secret Invasion_. For those who aren't familiar with these storylines, there's a brief description of how those and other storylines affect this story in the _References_ section at the end of each chapter. This story also takes place before the events of _Amazing Spider-Man _#590-591._

**Chapter One**

Peter Parker looked down from the top story of one of New York's countless skyscrapers and contemplated his life.

Of course, Peter wasn't actually _inside_ said skyscraper, as most people would be if they were on its top story. He was positioned on its vertical outer wall, his feet higher than his head, looking up at the busy streets of New York through tinted one-way mirrors. No one passing by at that moment, even if they could have seen that high up, would've recognized him as Peter, but rather as the legendary costumed vigilante known to the world as Spider-Man.

Peter's back was beginning to ache from clinging to the building and from maintaining his upside-down position, so he took a moment to readjust himself in a right-side-up fashion, and happened to catch a glimpse of his reflection in one of the building's many windows. Sometimes, even after all these years, the sight of himself in brightly-colored, arachnid-themed tights still made him laugh on the inside. As a nerdy teenager who had just received all the physical benefits of a radioactive spider bite, he had known next to nothing about fashion, and had arduously designed and sewn the costume himself. Thrilled at the amazing abilities he had been afforded, he had gone for the effect of a grandiose, larger than life character with an elaborate costume to reflect that, rather than the more practical uniforms that many of his fellow superheroes seemed to favor. Today, he had to admit to himself that the costume did look a bit ridiculous, but looking back, he wasn't sure what he'd change. Come to think of it, he still knew next to nothing about fashion.

Thinking back to his early days as Spider-Man always came with reflections upon his double life in general and the remorseful recollection of his selfish choice which had cost Uncle Ben his life. Why was Peter Spider-Man? Is this what he really wanted out of life, or was there something more? Of course, he knew full well the answer to the first question and had gone over it in his head time and time again. After learning the hard way an unforgettable lesson about power and responsibility, all attempts he had made to give up being Spider-Man had ultimately proven futile, and he continued his constant battle against crime and evil as a means to atone for his mistake and make sure his power was being put to good use. But did he really want to spend his whole life as a down-on-his-luck, out-of-work photographer-by-day/masked crimefighter by night with his closest companions being an elderly aunt, a best friend with a history of mental instability, and a bunch of unregistered fugitive superheroes?

He didn't think so.

Peter let out a small sigh. He knew where this train of thought was leading him, because it had led him here before. What he really wanted was a girlfriend, maybe even eventually a wife—a loving and beautiful female companion with whom he could freely share the stresses and pains and joys of the double life such as the one he lived, and every other part of his life as well. Unfortunately, he had never completely recovered from the heartbreak of Gwen's death long ago or from his break-up with Mary Jane, and he didn't know Carlie or any other girls well enough yet to get involved in such a serious relationship at this point. That being the case, his romantic possibilities were seriously, depressingly limited.

"Help! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

A cry for help. Just about any time he happened to be swinging innocently across the rooftops of New York, any time he took the opportunity to sit down on the side of any given building and really think about his life, there was always some sort of robbery or mugging or assault that would require the attention of your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Peter was almost surprised he hadn't heard one sooner.

The scream had come from the alley a few yards away from the building on which he was perched. Suddenly alert and moving quickly, Peter shot out a sticky but strong strand of webbing and swung down to the scene of the crime. A small gang of mean-looking thugs were closing in on a terrified young woman in a rather hostile way. Peter couldn't tell whether their intention was theft or rape or something else, but he didn't wait to find out. He mentally braced himself for the battle and swung into action.

_There's only three of them_, Peter thought to himself. _This should be a cinch._

"Thank you for calling Spidey's twenty-four hour crimefighting service," he said as he dropped down to the ground in the middle of the three startled thugs. "How may I help you today?" He was always trying to think of new quips and lame jokes to use during his fights; this was a new one that he had tried a few different variations of already. He had become notorious for his wit and sarcasm among criminals and fellow crimefighters alike, and they usually helped him to maintain a lighthearted attitude instead of being scared or depressed by the dangerous work he did.

"It's Spider-Man!" yelled one of the thugs, a long-haired man in a dirty brown jacket who appeared to be the leader of the group. "Get him!" He reached into his jacket, presumably for a gun, and the two other thugs wielded knives that they had already been using to intimidate their victim.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious!" Peter replied to the head thug's exclamation, punching him forcefully in the face before he could get his gun out. "It's good to know I can always count on those amazing powers of observation you have. I just wish you'd use them for good instead of evil! I mean, wouldn't Captain Obvious be a cool name for a superhero?" The thug was still struggling for his gun, so Peter also took the liberty of delivering a swift kick to knock his feet out from under him. "Come to think of it, I should have called myself Captain Obvious instead of Spider-Man."

Okay, the Captain Obvious thing was a tangent and it was getting a little lame. Better go back to the crimefighting service bit. Especially since the other two thugs were coming at him with their knives.

"That's two severe beating combos with a side order of justice, coming right up," Peter said as he webbed the face of the thug to his right and, thanks to the warning of his trusty spider-sense, easily dodged a knife blow from the other thug on the left. "Please drive through to the second window to collect your order." Having successfully blinded one thug with his webbing, it was an easy matter to knock him down with a well-placed kick to the stomach, so Peter wouldn't have to worry about him staggering around blindly with a knife in his hands.

"You're in luck," Peter said, turning toward the last thug still standing. "Today's special is a double helping of pain at no extra charge!"

"Do you ever shut up?" the man asked angrily, charging at Peter and swinging his knife carelessly.

"Not if I can help it!" the masked hero retorted. Avoiding the knife with the help of his spider-sense, Peter grabbed the man's arm and held the knife away from himself. Then he delivered a few light blows (well, they were light compared to the full capacity of Peter's strength) to the man's head and chest and pushed him to the ground. The thug was out cold.

"Thank you for dining with us, and have a nice day!" Peter addressed the pile of thugs as he began to web them up. Then he remembered their victim, and looked back to the far corner of the alley to see if she was still there. She was. He walked a little bit closer to make sure she was safe. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Before the woman could answer, he noticed something about her which he hadn't had time to think about from a distance in the midst of battle. _A redhead_, Peter thought to himself, sighing inwardly. _Out of all the young women in New York, why'd she have to be a redhead? And a pretty one, at that. It's not like I needed another reminder of my nonexistent love life._

"I…I think so, yes," the woman replied shakily, though obviously relieved to have been rescued. "Thank you."

"No need to thank me, just doing my job," Peter replied, and immediately winced. Even for someone with his taste in jokes, a corny superhero cliché like that was pretty low. "Um, ma'am, you should probably call the police, and then make sure you can get home safely. These streets are a dangerous place to be." With that, he shot another webline up to the top of the building he had come from and swung away.

He patrolled around the city for a little while longer, but found no more clients in need of Spidey's twenty-four hour crimefighting service, so Peter thought it was about time to head back home, to the lowly apartment he shared with his roommate, NYPD officer Vin Gonzales. On his way home, though, he happened to pass by another inconspicuous apartment which he shared with several more colorful characters than Vin, the one which had been covertly leased to them by the Rand Corporation under the name of Samuel Sterns. Peter figured it wouldn't hurt to see who was currently there and stop in for a moment to say hi.

***

"I'm tellin' ya, Doc, I've seen a lot of weird stuff in my time, but whenever you start babbling about all that mystical mumbo jumbo, it just goes over my head." Logan wore plain blue jeans and a white undershirt and stood casually by the outer window. He had not shaved or brushed his hair today, but somehow it retained its familiar angular shape.

Dr. Stephen Strange, arrayed as usual in his elaborate blue uniform with the regal red cape, sat on the couch to the side. "You would do well not to discount the mystic arts, Logan," Strange spoke calmly. "There are many forces at work in the universe by which one may perceive things that would otherwise easily go unseen."

"Yeah?" Logan asked sarcastically. "Like what?"

"Like that presence behind you, for instance," Strange replied.

Logan turned around to see his teammate, the amazing Spider-Man, hanging upside-down on their window. "What the heck—" Logan began in frustration, realizing that he had missed the obvious. He turned back to Strange. "How long has _he_ been there?"

"Not a terribly long time," Strange admitted. "You might open the window for him, you know."

Grudgingly, Logan opened the window and allowed Spider-Man to come in. "What do you want, webhead?"

"Nice to see you too, Wolverine," Spider-Man answered, entering the apartment that sufficed as the secret headquarters of the unofficial New Avengers and standing next to Wolverine. "How's it going, guys?"

"All is well for the time being, Spider-Man," Doctor Strange answered. "It seems to be a rather quiet day for crises and the like. But what brings you here at this time? Is there some matter that would require our attention?"

"No, not really," Spider-Man said. "I already took down about five giant killer robots today _and_ stopped Dr. Doom from taking over the world, so things are pretty much good. I just thought I'd swing by for a bit and see what you guys were doing. Although, come to think of it, I'm pretty thirsty after all that fighting." He walked over to the refrigerator in the corner of the room, hopeful for what he might find inside.

Logan continued to stare skeptically at Spider-Man. "He _is _joking about those robots and Doom, right?"

"I am fairly certain that he is," Doctor Strange replied.

"Hard to tell with him."

"I believe it is safe to assume that he is serious no more than, say, twenty-five per cent of the time," said Strange, adding a bit of his own dry humor.

"Hey, I heard that," Spider-Man called back from the fridge. "And, for your information, I don't joke _all _the time. Like, there was that one time when I serious. Don't you guys remember that one time?"

"I rest my case," said Doctor Strange.

Spider-Man selected a cold can of soda, seated himself on the couch next to Doctor Strange, and pulled up the lower part of his mask, revealing his mouth. He popped the lid of the soda can and asked, "So, what _are_ you guys doing today?"

Logan shrugged. "Looks like a whole lot of nothing so far," he said.

"As I said, it's been a rather quiet day," Doctor Strange answered. "I suppose, like you, we merely came to 'hang out'."

"Wow," said Spider-Man between sips of soda. "Am I the only one who thinks it's pretty sad when big, powerful superheroes like us have nothing else to do but sit around and talk? The supervillains must be slacking off today. They should be ashamed of themselves. Not that I'm complaining."

Logan shrugged again. "Maybe it's just that a superhero hideout is the coolest place any of us have to hang out," he suggested. "'Course, I could always go back to the X-Mansion."

"Whoa!" Spider-Man exclaimed suddenly. "Are you saying that we're only cool because we're superheroes and that we're not cool as our civilian identities?"

"You said it, not me," Logan pointed out.

"What?" Spider-Man asked. "I wouldn't say that. I'll have you know that I was just as cool before I became a superhero as I am now."

"I'm sure you were," Logan muttered sarcastically under his breath.

"In fact," Spider-Man continued, seemingly stuck on this issue of coolness for reasons unknown to Logan. "In my civilian identity, I'm a very wealthy and attractive man who has at least three extremely hot supermodel cheerleader girlfriends."

Logan gave Spider-Man a look of mock contempt. "I don't even have to smell it in your blood to know that one's a lie," he said.

There was a moment of silence in which Spider-Man feigned a look of dejection. Then he quietly said, "Man, I gotta find myself a girlfriend."

***

Reed Richards was fascinated.

It is difficult to determine whether Reed Richards was actually inside Four Freedoms Plaza, headquarters to the Fantastic Four, or not. Certainly his body was there, in one of the many sections of his laboratory, seated in the time travel device with various equipment and appartus hooked up to his brain. However, with the new 'observe only' mode he had installed in the time machine, he was able to visit different periods of time as an invisible, intangible presence, thereby eliminating the danger of inadvertently altering or disrupting the timestream by anything he might do during his explorations.

Of course, even without the protective measures of the 'observe only' feature, there wasn't much danger right now of his significantly altering history, because he wasn't presently observing any specific period of time. Having combined the time observer with his interdimensional travel technology, Reed—or at least his mental presence as the machine made it appear—was in the midst of the timestream, going backward and forward and into other realities as it pleased him. Though he tried to be modest, sometime he was still astounded by the wonders he could invent with his immense intelligence. Standing here in the middle of the timestream, walking around it as if he were merely in antigravity, was an amazing experience. The power to go whenever and see whatever he wanted to was somewhat intoxicating—it reminded him of the Watcher, a cosmic being who his team had encountered many times—but it was also humbing to consider himself compared to all this vastness, and it was relaxing to be able to come here—if he could even call it here, since he wasn't exactly in a place—and escape from the stresses of the reality in which he actually lived.

As Reed floated leisurely through all the different realities, he was entertained by sights which were usually familiar in at least some degree, but which were all vastly different in their own way. He saw a world in which he and all the other superheroes he knew were much younger, as if their adventures had begun only in the past decade or so, and he witnessed another world in which he recognized similarities to his teammates in what looked like 17th century England. Reed, whose mind was always racing to gain more knowledge and to examine all the different possibilities of a different event or circumstance, was thrilled at each new and different point in time and space he encountered.

After exploring the multiverse for a while, Reed heard a familiar voice calling to him from beyond the deepest reaches of space and time. "Reed? Are you in there?" asked his wife, Sue. "It's time for dinner."

"I'm several realities away right now, honey," Reed said, hoping that he had worked out all the bugs in the time machine's communicator so that he would still be heard despite the delicate separation of his body and mind. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Don't be too long, or your stew will get cold," Sue warned him.

Reed began to make his way back to his own reality, relishing the opportunity for further exploration, but also relishing the opportunity to eat dinner with his family and enjoy his wife's cooking. He had arrived at his own rightful place in space and time and was about to depart from the machine entirely when he noticed something very strange only a relatively short while back in the timestream from the present. It looked like the dividing point between two different realities, which was actually fairly common, but instead of a neat, clean separation like usual, this was an uneven rift, as if something had been torn out or removed from the timestream. But that wasn't possible, was it?

Dinner could wait a little bit longer. Reed had to see exactly what this was about. He moved closer, curious and apprehensive about exploring whatever strange reality or anomaly in time existed inside the rift. He peered inside and saw three figures surrounded by infinite blackness. If he had had to guess who he would have seen inside this rift in the timestream, these three figures would have been very far down on his list.

On one side was Spider-Man—or, at least, someone in a Spider-Man costume. Reed couldn't know for sure because the man had his mask off, revealing a brown-eyed, brown-haired, and very anguished face, and Reed didn't know what Spider-Man looked like under his mask. Standing next to Spider-Man, holding him tightly and also very clearly distraught, was an attractive red-haired woman who Reed didn't recognize. And across from them, facing them, torturing and taunting them, was a looming, ominious, sinister crimson figure who Reed had encountered a time or two before in his many adventures and superhero battles.

Mephisto.

_What would a being as powerful as Mephisto want with Spider-Man?_ Reed asked himself curiously. _And why would it create a rift in time? What exactly is going on here? _There was only one way to find out. Thankful that he could see and hear what was going on without the possibility of being seen or heard himself, Reed stood by silently and watched the proceeding transaction with fascination and awe.

***

"So you're sayin' Spider-Man is supposta be _married_?" Ben asked skeptically at the dinner table.

"Man, if a chump like Spider-Man can get a wife, then why can't I?" Johnny asked in mock indignation.

"Prolly 'cause Spider-Man's actually smarter than a rock, unlike some guys I can think of," Ben shot back.

"Says the guy who's about as handsome as a pile of rocks...because he _is_ a pile of rocks," Johnny retorted.

"Boys!" Sue shouted. She knew that her brother and Ben were only teasing each other and didn't mean their insults, but she preferred to eat her dinner in some semblance of peace. "Please, not at the table."

"Sure, Suzie," Ben answered gruffly. "But I sure hope Matchstick knows what time it's gonna be right after dinner." Of course, they all knew that Ben was referring to his trademark clobberin' time.

Reed was seated at the circular dinner table next to his wife, Sue, who was feeding a small chunk of beef stew to their toddler daughter, Valeria. Next to Valeria's hi-chair sat her older brother, Franklin, and on the other side of the table were Ben and Johnny. Reed realized that allowing the two of them to sit next to each other at dinner was probably a mistake.

"I know it sounds outlandish," Reed said between bites of delicious beef stew. "But from what I've been able to observe, Spider-Man was once married to this woman—her name was Mary Jane Watson—but he agreed to give up his marriage in exchange for Mephisto healing his injured aunt and making everyone forget his true identity."

"Whoa, wait a second," Johnny said again, even more surprised than he had been before. "Spider-Man was married to _Mary Jane Watson?!? _The chick from the Lobster-Man movie? Red hair, hot body?"

"That sounds like who I saw," Reed answered.

Sue kicked him under the table.

"Except for the hot body part, I mean," Reed amended. "Just the red hair and the name."

Johnny slammed his fist on the table in frustration. "What does Spider-Man have that I don't?" he wondered aloud.

"Maybe a personality?" Ben suggested sarcastically.

"Shut up, Rockface," Johnny replied.

Ignoring their bickering, Sue commented, "Well, I don't think it sounds _too_ outlandish. After all, rifts in the time/space continuum and that sort of thing aren't really anything new to us. And since we didn't know anything about who Spider-Man was under the mask, I never tried to assume whether he was married or not."

"Well, Stretch, I guess your story would explain why I can't seem ta remember Webhead's real name for the life o' me," Ben said. "Even though I remember him unmasking during the whole Civil War thing."

"What do you mean you don't remember his name?" asked Johnny. "Everyone saw it on TV. It was...um..." Johnny's eyes widended at the realization that what Reed and Ben were saying made all too much sense. "Um, okay, that's a little creepy. Hey Reed, you didn't find out Spider-Man's real name, did you?" Johnny asked. "I'd like to give that guy a piece of my mind."

"I _did_ learn his real name," Reed replied. "But it's not mine to tell. At least not yet. Not until I figure out what we're going to do about all this."

"You're gonna tell Spider-Man what happened and help him get his wife back, arn'tcha, Daddy?" Franklin asked innocently, fascinated by such an intriguing conversation.

"Well, that's one possible option we have," Reed answered.

"But Reed," Sue protested. "From what you said you saw, Spider-Man _chose_ to give up his marriage in order to save his aunt's life. Shouldn't we honor his decision and not burden him with the knowledge of what he had in..." she searched for the right term, and wasn't completely sure that she'd found it. "...a past life?"

"I've considered that," Reed answered. "And it does make sense. But what also makes sense is that, if some cosmic demon had tampered with my life and erased my marriage from existence—" He glanced lovingly at Sue. "—then I would want to do something about it if at all possible."

"Yeah, but what's he gonna do?" asked Ben.

"Spider-Man has been a good friend and ally of ours many times in the past," Reed said. "Should he want to somehow try to undo the rift in the space/time continuum and reclaim those lost years of his marriage, I think we should help him."

"Great," said Ben. "We're gonna have another fight where our powers won't do squat 'cause we're up against some big cosmic magic guy who can just cast a spell on us anyways."

"We've fought magic users before and come out on top," Reed pointed out, painfully remembering the time when his archrival, Victor von Doom, had gained mastery of the mystic arts and used it to attack and torture their family. "Besides, if it does come to a battle with Mephisto, I think I may know how to handle him."

"_If_ it comes to that," Sue countered. "But that's not the issue. The issue is that Spider-Man has a right to privacy and to the decision he made. We have no right to make this decision for him."

"Exactly," Reed agreed. "That's why he's going to make it himself."

"Huh?" asked Ben.

"Johnny," Reed said. "Go fly around the city and see if you can find Spider-Man. Tell him we'd like to talk to him."

***

Of course Peter was thankful for his loyal companions in the New Avengers, but that wasn't the sort of companionship he really longed for most. Well, okay, Spider-Woman had been pretty hot, and it would kind of be fitting in a rather obvious way for them to get together, but he didn't think he stood a chance with her, especially since she had turned out to be a Skrull. Having gotten his free soda and with nothing left to say to Wolverine and Doctor Strange, he had departed from the New Avengers' apartment and began to head towards his own.

It wasn't long before he saw the signal. This was New York, home to all the major superheroes, and Four Freedoms Plaza was in a pretty central location. So when Peter saw the giant flaming insignia of a spider in the sky, he knew it wasn't terribly out of the ordinary. Johnny Storm, a.k.a. the Human Torch, had often used this method when either he personally or the entire Fantastic Four needed to get in touch with Spider-Man. He was not too surprised, though he was curious about what the summons was for this time.

"It's not quite my own Spider-Signal, but it works, "Peter said to himself as he webbed his way over the rooftops. It wasn't long before he arrived at Four Freedoms Plaza and, just as he had suspected, saw the flaming figure of the Human Torch circling overhead. "You rang?" he asked, landing gracefully on the roof of the building.

"Spidey, old pal!" the Torch greeted him, flaming off and landing gently on the roof in front of his guest. "Glad you could make it." He smiled widely and extended a hand in a friendly gesture.

"Um, thanks, Torch," Peter answered, awkwardly starting to return the handshake. He touched the Torch's hand for a quick moment, got the stinging sensation one gets when one burns one's hand on a hot oven without an oven mitt, and instinctively pulled his hand back. In his experience, most other superheroes didn't usually greet each other with such formalities, but whatever. "So, um, what's going on? You guys need help stopping Dr. Doom or something? 'Cause I'm actually pretty good at that. Just ask Wolverine."

"Spider-Man," the Torch said seriously, ignoring the other's banter. "Reed wants—or, well, all of us want, I guess—to talk to you about something. Something important."

"Uh, okay," Peter answered cautiously. It was never easy to respond to a statement as frustratingly vague or as somberly spoken as that one was. Curiosity continued to well up inside of Peter. He noticed that, for whatever reason, the Torch wasn't returning his comical banter like usual. Maybe he was just distracted by the apparent weightiness of whatever it was they had to talk about, but Peter thought he detected a hint of something more. Was it jealousy?

"You, uh, you want to be a little more specific about that, Torch?" Peter asked.

The Human Torch opened the roof hatch that led into the interior of the Fantastic Four's headquarters. "Spider-Man, please come inside."

***

Inside, Peter sat down in the private laboratory of Reed Richards with the world-famous team of adventurers known as the Fantastic Four. Johnny Storm took a seat next to his sister, Susan Storm Richards, more commonly known as the Invisible Woman. Next to her was the extremely intelligent and extremely pliable Reed Richards, Mister Fantastic, and on the other side of him sat probably the most easily recognizable of the four, Ben Grimm, the super-strong orange behemoth known as the Thing. Spider-Man had encountered, fought alongside, and even fought against the Fantastic Four more times than he could count throughout their respective superhero careers. Peter remembered trying to join them when he was much younger and had first gotten his powers. He liked to think that their relationship had matured a lot since then.

"Uh, hey guys," Peter awkwardly addressed the four of them. "Sorry I'm late for our weekly game night. I'm up for anything we play as long as it's not Twister, because I'm pretty sure Mister Fantastic had an unfair advantage last time."

"Spider-Man," said Reed tersely. "I've recently discovered something important that you may want to know about."

"Yeah, I kind of got that impression from the Torch," Peter said, realizing how serious his allies were being and deciding to at least _try_ to refrain from witty banter for the time being. "What's going on?"

"You see, that's the problem," Reed answered. "We're not sure if we should tell you."

Peter was confused. "So you invite me in here and tell me there's something that I might want to know, but you might not be able to tell me?"

Reed. explained. "While you might want to know it, it's also possible that you might not want to know it. I've discovered..." He pasued in search for the right words. "We've discovered some information from a reliable source. Information about you, but that you most likely have no knowledge of."  
"Did I inherit a million dollars?" Peter asked. Oops. So much for refraining from witty banter.

"No," said Reed. He sighed deeply. "I know this sounds strange to you. I know that there's no way I can reasonably explain how we know something about you that you yourself don't know, and then give you the option of whether or not to learn it."

"Yeah, not that I don't trust you, but all of this does sound a little crazy," Peter said. "Isn't there something you can give me to go on? A hint, or a piece of proof, or something?"

"How about that I know your name is Peter Parker?" Reed asked.

Peter sat up in alarm. That got his attention. "Uh, yeah, that would do it," he said.

"Wait a sec," Ben commented, mentally searching for the name's association. "_Peter Parker?!?_ The guy who takes the pictures of Spider-Man and sells 'em to the _Bugle_?"

"Well, uh, not anymore, exactly," Peter said, embarrassed. "You see, I—"

"Hey, Reed," Johnny interjected. "How come _we_ didn't make secret identities and get rich selling pictures of ourselves? It's brilliant!"

"Well, I'm not exactly rich," Peter admitted. He turned back to Reed, anxious to learn exactly what all this was about. "Come on, Reed. Where are you going with all of this?"

Well," Reed said. "Long story short, I happened to discover something that happened to you, but which I have reason to believe you have no memory of. The knowledge of what I found might be something that you would be happy to know, but it also has the potential to be a great burden to you. That's why we decided we would give you the option of whether to listen to it or not."

"I gotta say, Reed, it's not really fair to get a guy's curiosity up with something like that and then expect him to make an unbiased choice."

Reed shook his head. "I know it's not fair, and I'm sorry for that. Without knowing what this information is, there's no way you could know whether or not it's something you'd want to know. The power of suggestion in my telling you of it makes you want to lean toward the option of hearing it, regardless of what the consequences may be to you. I know it's not fair to you...but it's all we could do."

Peter thought. He didn't know what to say. What could anyone say to a proposal like this? What choice did he have? If he didn't listen to whatever this was, not knowing would nag at him for some time to come, quite possibly even the rest of his life, depending on how serious it actually was. And, even if this was a hard pill to swallow, he had faced unpleasant and shocking news before, and always managed to get over it somehow sooner or later. He remembered the remorse he had felt at the deaths of Uncle Ben and Gwen Stacey. He remembered the shock of learning that his parents were still alive and the loss he had felt when he realized that it wasn't really them at all. He remembered the hurt and betrayal he had experienced when the truth had come out about the children Gwen had had with Norman Osborn. Somehow, though, he had still been able to carry on through it all.

"Sure," Peter said with a deep breath and even deeper thoughts behind it. "Tell me what you know."

Reed looked at him with a straight face and an anxiety that showed itself in his hesitation. "Peter, there's no easy way to tell you this, but..." He paused once again, and then decided to get it over with. "You're supposed to be married."

**To be continued...**

_**References:**_

_Spider-Man unmasked himself on public television in compliance with the Superhuman Registration Act during the events of _Civil War_. The Kingpin then took advantage of this by hiring an assassin to kill Peter Parker, but the assassin mistakenly shot Aunt May instead. In order to save his aunt's life, Peter made a deal with Mephisto to have his marriage erased in exchange for saving Aunt May's life and making everyone forget his secret identity during the events of _One More Day_._

_Carlie Cooper and Vin Gonzales are part of the supporting cast of _Brand New Day_, the follow-up to _One More Day_._

_Spider-Man joined the New Avengers in _New Avengers _#3. Since the events of _Civil War_, the New Avengers have been fugitives from the law._

_Peter Parker became Spider-Man and inadvertently helped cause his Uncle Ben's death in _Amazing Fantasy _#15._

_Spider-Man's first girlfriend, Gwen Stacey, was killed by the Green Goblin in _Amazing Spider-Man _#121._

_The 'observe-only' mode of Reed's time machine was found in chapter one of the novel _Fantastic Four: War Zone_ by Greg Cox._

_Reed's exploration through the multiverse in this chapter contains references to the Ultimate Marvel universe and the _Marvel 1602_ series._

_Mary Jane Watson starred in the _Lobster-Man_ movie in _Amazing Spider-Man _#s 484-486._

_Dr. Doom used sorcery to attack and torture the Fantastic Four in _Fantastic Four_ #s 497-500. _

_Spider-Woman, a founding member of the New Avengers, was revealed to be the Skrull Queen Veranke in disguise in New Avengers #40._

_Spider-Man tried to join the Fantastic Four in _Amazing Spider-Man _#2._

_Peter Parker's parents, who had been previously thought deceased, were shown to be apparently alive in _Amazing Spider-Man _#365. They were later revealed to be robots, not Peter's real parents._

_Spider-Man learned that Gwen Stacey had given birth to Norman Osborn's children in _Amazing Spider-Man _#509-514._

_Author's Note: If you like this story so far, then watch the video trailer I made for it at .com/watch?v=UZEvLWjv6UE._


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

"You're supposed to be married."

Peter Parker tried in vain to make any sort of sense out of the words which Reed Richards had just spoken.

"Uh, you mind elaborating on that a little bit more, Doc?" the confused webslinger inquired. "Like, is this one of those 'You're secretly the long-lost heir to the ancient Spider Kingdom and you must wed the beautiful Spider-Princess by midnight in order to claim your rightful throne' kind of deals? Or is it like—"

"Peter, I can explain," said Reed.

"Well, I sure hope so," Peter replied, "because I have no idea what kind of weird joke scenario I would've used next if you hadn't intervened. But seriously, Doc…what's going on?"

He could read the expressions of knowing guilt on the faces of each of the four cosmically-enhanced adventurers who sat in front of him. It looked like none of them knew how to tell him whatever it was that they knew, but they all knew that they needed to.

Finally, Susan, the Invisible Woman, spoke up. "It's…hard to explain," she acknowledged. Turning to her husband, she said, "Reed, why don't you just _show_ him?"

Reed nodded. "Yes, that's probably best." He got up and began to walk across his laboratory. "Peter, follow me."

Peter obeyed uncertainly, rising from his chair and moving across the cold, metallic, unfriendly floors. Reed motioned for him to sit down in a chair on a large platform with lots of sensors, controls, and equipment surrounding it. Even with his well-above-average scientific knowledge, Reed's intellect was vastly greater than his own, and Peter couldn't recognize most of the devices he saw throughout the lab. "Are you gonna operate on me, Doc?" Peter asked, sitting down in the chair.

"No," Reed answered. "If you don't mind…please remove your mask."

Peter was hesitant at first, but then he remembered that the Fantastic Four had somehow already learned his true identity, and so he figured he didn't have much left to lose. He pulled up his mask and laid it gently down on the ground beside him.

Reed looked at him and, as if confirming something to himself, said, "Yes, you're certainly the one I saw."

"Saw? What do you mean?" Peter asked, confused. "When did you see me?"

"Again, it will be much easier to let you see for yourself than it would be for me to try to explain it to you," Reed answered cryptically, placing a futuristic-looking visor over Peter's eyes.

"Virtual reality?" he asked flippantly.

"It may seem like that," Reed admitted, "but I assure you, everything you are about to see is real—in an alternate reality, if not in our own."

"Ooookay," said Peter, now quite anxious to see whatever it was that Reed was going to show him. "What does that have to do with me getting married?"

Without answering, Reed stretched his rubbery arm over to another set of controls and pushed a few buttons that, for all Peter knew, could've changed the channel on a television set. "This should bring you back to the exact point at which I began watching," he said. "I've set it so that you'll only be able to observe, but not interfere with anything."

"Kind of like that big bald cosmic guy?" Peter suggested, referring to the Watcher.

"You'll be observing a rift in the time-space continuum that has branched off into at least two distinctly separate realities."

"Same old, same old," said Peter.

"Brace yourself, Peter," said Reed. "This isn't going to be pleasant for you."

"What—"

Reed pressed another button.

Peter's mind went black.

***

Peter saw himself, but how was that possible?

There he was, in the middle of nothingness, total blackness surrounding him, standing in his Spider-Man uniform with his mask off, just as he was standing right now. And he was not alone. Standing next to him, embracing him with tears running down his face, was a beautiful red-haired woman—

_Mary Jane?!? _Peter thought, surprised and confused, remembering the hurt of their break-up long ago.

And across from himself and Mary Jane was another figure whom Peter didn't recognize, and wasn't sure if he wanted to. It was a gruesome, demonic, figure who carried an aura of pure evil and was looming menacingly over himself and Mary Jane.

Just what the heck was going on?

Reed had said that Peter would be watching a rift in the time-space continuum. Was this himself, but at a different point in time and space? A different reality?

"Hey!" Peter shouted. "Hey, Mary Jane! Hey, uh…me! You two! What's happening over there?" But the figures made no indication that they could see or hear him. Just like Reed had said, he was powerless to interfere, only able to observe.

So observe he did.

He watched as the sinister figure, who he learned was a cosmically-powered being known as Mephisto, seemed to bargain with he and Mary Jane for their marriage in order to save Aunt May's life.

_So that's what Reed meant about me being married_, Peter thought. He knew from his various heroic adventures that, as crazy as it seemed, the reality in which he lived was only one of infinite realities that existed, each one slightly different from the next. It was quite plausible, then, that he would have been married to Mary Jane in an alternate reality. _But if it happened in an alternate reality, then why is it such a big deal to my reality? And what had happened to Aunt May in this reality so that her life needs to be saved, anyway? _

He kept watching and listening, and gathered from the conversation that Aunt May had been shot by a sniper hired by the Kingpin after Peter had revealed his identity during the Civil War. _But that didn't happen in my reality either_, thought Peter. _I thought nobody remembered my identity after…_ Wait a second. Of course his identity wasn't publicly known, because if it was, then Peter Parker wouldn't be able to do anything without the police and the registered heroes hunting him down. But he definitely remembered unmasking on public television. _How did everyone suddenly forget my identity? And if they did, then why did Kingpin still come after Aunt May?_

This didn't make sense, unless it was still just one of many alternate realities, but considering the urgency with which Reed had spoken, Peter didn't find that likely. His scientific mind was racing through possibilities, trying to find some way to justify the reality of what was unfolding before him. Reed had said something about a rift in the time-space continuum, so perhaps something—something that was happening or would happen in the scene he was watching—had caused that rift, splitting what he now remembered apart from what had originally happened. Was that possible? Was this Mephisto powerful enough to do that?

Peter kept watching with a mixture of fascination and horror. He saw the cosmic demon explain his deal to them and promise to save Aunt May. He saw himself and Mary Jane, who was apparently supposed to be his wife, weigh the pros and cons of the deal he was offering them. He saw Mary Jane whisper something unknown to Mephisto as part of their deal, he watched himself painfully concede to agree, and he felt anger like he had rarely ever known before when he realized that Mephisto had tricked them into unknowingly sacrificing a daughter who they would have had. He observed with deep remorse as Mephisto's magic swirled around them and he, Peter Parker, embraced his wife for what was to be the last time. Her classic greeting to him—"Face it, Tiger, you've just hit the jackpot"—was drowned out and left unfinished by the blackness that was consuming them and tearing them apart. Then they were both gone, and the intangible Peter was left standing there in shock.

Peter screamed.

So this was what had happened. He and Mary Jane had been married—were supposed to be married, just like Reed had said. Aunt May had been fatally injured, and the only one who could save her was Mephisto, who would also conveniently make everyone forget Spider-Man's true identity, but only if Peter and Mary Jane agreed to let him erase the fact of their marriage from time, leaving them with no recollection if it afterward. Grudgingly, they had agreed, and that had created the reality that Peter was in now—the one where he was a loner separated from the woman who should have been the love of his life. It was diabolical.

Mephisto's words echoed hauntingly in Peter's mind. "You will not consciously remember this bargain, or this moment, or the life you lived to this point. But there will be a very small part of your soul that _will _remember, that _will_ know what you lost. And my joy will be in listening to that part of your soul screaming throughout eternity."

Now Peter remembered.

***

From the indicators on the equipment and the anguished look on Peter's face, Reed could tell that Peter had reached the end of that particular segment of the timestream. He pressed a few buttons that would return Peter's mind to the present and then removed the visor from Peter's head. Peter opened his eyes but sat still for a few seconds, probably his mind's way of adjusting to the sudden changes in time and dimension.

"Peter," Reed said calmly. "Can you hear me?"

Without warning, Peter jumped to his feet and stood facing Reed. "Mephisto!" he shouted angrily. "Mephisto did this! He tricked me and manipulated me and stole the love of my life!"

"Peter, please calm down," said Reed. He had feared that something like this might be Peter's initial reaction, but he couldn't say that he blamed him. "Just sit and—"

"No, I have no intention of calming down!" Peter exclaimed violently, beginning to storm away from Reed. "That monster screwed up reality and ruined my life! I'm going to find Mephisto and kill him with my bare hands! I'm going to—"

Peter's rampage came to an abrupt halt when he noticed the Thing, the Invisible Woman, and the Human Torch—who, true to his name, was currently on fire—standing in front of him, sternly blocking his path.

"Hold on there, pal," said the gruff voice of the Thing. "Ya got plenty o' reason ta be upset, but let's not do something' yer gonna regret later."

"Listen to Reed, Peter," the Invisible Woman said. "Just take a few moments to calm down before you do anything rash."

"Yeah," agreed the Torch, hovering a few feet in the air. "What they said."

Peter's brow was furrowed at them, but he slowly let it go loose, and unclenched his fists, which he hadn't realized had been clenched. Then he dropped his arms to his sides, let his shoulders sag, lowered his head slightly, and began to weep.

"Aw, jeez," said Ben. "I just hate seein' a grown hero cry like that."

"Wouldn't you, if you were going through what he's going through?" asked Johnny, seeing Peter's pain and wanting to stick up for his friendly rival.

"Well, mebbe…" Ben admitted reluctantly.

Sue had her hand on Peter's shoulder in an effort to comfort him, and Reed walked over to help. "Peter," Sue said, "I know this must be impossibly difficult for you. I can't imagine what I would do if this had happened to Reed and I, and if I somehow found out about it. If you need to rest here and think things through for a little while, you're more than welcome to do so."

"Thanks," Peter managed, the tears beginning to clear up. "But…I'll be okay. I've kind of gotten used to losing my loved ones and going through all kinds of crap like this." The statement had an unmistakably bitter tone. Reed wasn't sure how serious Peter was being, and decided not to comment. "I just…I'm not going to let it get the best of me. Instead, I'm going to do something about it."

"Do?" Reed asked curiously. "What are you planning on doing, if I may ask?"

"I…I don't know yet," Peter admitted weakly. "But something. I have to do _something_, or else this will drive me insane. If I have to, I'll look up Mary Jane, drag her out here, and show her what you just showed me. But I'd much prefer to hunt down Mephisto and make him put reality back the way it was." After a brief pause, he resolutely added, "And make him pay for what he did."

"Not to try to knock ya down or nuthin', webhead," Ben began, "But how's a guy like you gonna fight one o' them big super cosmic guys like Mephisto?"

"And wouldn't it be kind of unfair?" Johnny asked. "From what I understand, you agreed to trade your marriage for your aunt's life. Mephisto kept his end of the bargain, so shouldn't you keep yours too?"

"No," said Peter bitterly. "It wasn't fair. He tricked us. He didn't tell us about our daughter until it was too late, until after we had already agreed. If I had known that Mary Jane and I were supposed to have a daughter…" His voice trailed off. He tried to determine whether or not he would have willingly traded Aunt May's life for that of his own daughter. Come to think of it, he tried to imagine how he had even brought himself to willingly trade off his marriage. The thought of it repulsed him now, but there was no denying from the evidence that he had indeed done it.

"All I'm saying is that if you make a deal with the devil, you're gonna get burned," Johnny pointed out.

"Yeah," said Ben, seeing his point. "I mean, whaddya think wuz gonna happen? Ya don't just make a deal with those big cosmic evil guys an' expect 'em ta play nice."

"What are you saying?" Peter yelled, jumping on their disapproval. "What would _you_ have done? How can someone possibly be expected to choose between the woman they love and the woman who's been like the only real mother they've ever really known? How can you possibly say—"

"Peter," Sue interrupted, hoping to calm him down again. "No one here is judging you for the decision you made. Are they?" She glanced meaningfully at Johnny and Ben.

"Uh, no, Sis," Johnny answered unconvincingly.

"Nope," said Ben. "I wuz just sayin', is all."

"What we're saying," Reed amended, "is that we want to be able to help you in any way possible. You've been a noble hero and a trusted ally of ours for a long time, and if there's anything at all we can do, anything you might need if you do indeed formulate a plan…"

"Thanks again, Doc," said Peter. "But you've done so much already. I mean, I guess I should be thankful to you for showing me the truth, even though that truth wasn't exactly sunshine and butterflies."

"No thanks necessary," Reed said politely.

"I appreciate the offer to help, but in all honesty, I don't have a plan," Peter admitted. "I mean, Ben's right…with Mephisto's level of power, I wouldn't stand a chance against him, and none of you probably would either."

"Actually, I have a theory—" Reed began.

"Unless!" Peter exclaimed vibrantly.

Each member of the Fantastic Four looked at him, waiting for him to continue.

"Unless?" asked Reed.

"Doc, I'm gonna get out of here for now," said Peter, picking up his mask from where he had laid it on the floor and putting it on again. "Again, thanks for all you've done. And, if you don't mind, I may indeed come back to you in the not-so-distant future about helping me out on this."

"As I said, you're more than welcome to," Reed reiterated. "But what are you going to do now?"

"There's someone I've got to go talk to," Peter answered.

***

"You want to know about _Mephisto?!?_" Doctor Strange asked, incredulous.

"Um, yeah, that'd be good," Peter replied awkwardly. "I mean, I kind of figured you'd be the guy to ask about a magic demon guy like him. What can you tell me about him?" Spider-Man had been unable to locate the Doctor at the New Avengers' apartment this time, so he searched instead at the team's former hideout, Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum. Sure enough, Strange had departed from the hideout and returned to his own home. The two sat together in Strange's front room with Wong, the magician's assistant, not far away.

Doctor Strange began to explain. "Though Mephisto himself is not the devil, as he has often been mistaken to be, he does serve the devil, and rules over one of many realms of hell. He possesses unfathomable cosmic and spiritual power, is not bound by the laws of the physical world, and has been known to take pleasure in corrupting and condemning the souls of other beings."

"That doesn't sound good," Peter said flippantly.

"What interest have you with that vile fiend?" Strange asked, curious.

"Well, it's kind of a long story," Peter answered.

"The short version?"

Peter hesitated, searching for the most efficient way to relay the series of events, and then spoke. "Well, uh, I kind of found out that Mephisto apparently tricked me into allowing him to alter the time/space continuum and remove something that was very dear to me, and then left me with no memory of what had happened or the way time was supposed to be, and I was wondering if there was anything you could do about it," he explained casually.

"I see," Strange answered skeptically, deciding it best not to press for details at the time. "So what exactly is it that you want from Mephisto?"

"Short of his eternal torment and agony?" Peter asked. "Well, for starters, I'd really like him to put time back the way it was supposed to be. And I was kind of wondering if…" He trailed off, as if afraid to ask what he was about to ask.

"If what?" Strange prompted.

"If you could use your mystic power or magic spells or whatever to threaten him until he agrees to fix things," Peter said.

Strange shook his head in wonder. "You're asking for quite a mighty feat," he said.

"Yeah, I was kind of afraid of that," Peter muttered under his breath.

"I've crossed paths with Mephisto several times in the past, and have done what I can to fight him off," Strange said. "But I have been fortunate in the past. In truth, my level of power is no match for his. If I were to openly challenge Mephisto, it would likely be the last challenge I would ever make on this plane."

"Are you sure there's nothing you can do, Doc?" Peter pleaded. "I know it sounds crazy, but trust me, this is really important to me, and—"

"I have no doubt that it is," Strange answered sincerely. "And I certainly have no love for Mephisto myself. As your friend and teammate, I would gladly fight with you and help you do whatever it is that you need to do against him if I honestly believed that we had the slightest chance of success. But against one such as Mephisto…it would be utter foolishness for mortals such as ourselves to simply confront Mephisto and challenge him."

"But there are people who can, right?" Peter asked desperately. "I mean, us superheroes run into big cosmic entities like him three times a month at least. We've had all kinds of reality-altering adventures and have been able to fix the universe when it's been messed with in the past. There's gotta be someone as powerful as him, hasn't there?"

"Yes, there are those whose power would rival that of Mephisto," Strange answered. "But you would be hard-pressed finding one who would be willing to challenge him merely at your request. Unless there happens to be a cosmic entity who owes you a favor, I'm afraid there's not much you can do."

Peter sat in silence for a moment, thinking long and hard.

After a pause, Doctor Strange added, "I'm truly sorry, Spider-Man. If there was any way I could—"

"Actually, Doc, I think you just did!" Peter exclaimed joyously.

"I'm sorry?" asked the Doctor.

"Something you just said gave me an idea, Doc. It may not be much, but it might be my only hope. I've got to go find someone…but thanks for your help."

"Glad to be of service," Strange answered, though without knowing exactly what it was he had done.

Spider-Man prepared to leave, but suddenly he remembered the Fantastic Four's offer to help, and turned back to Doctor Strange. "Hey Doc," he said. "What if it wasn't just us?"

"What do you mean?" Strange asked quizzically.

"You said that your power alone wouldn't be enough to fight Mephisto," Peter said. "But what if it wasn't just you? What if it was you, and me, and some other heroes, and another big cosmic guy on top of all that? Would you be willing to try to help fight Mephisto then?"

Doctor Strange smiled slightly. "Yes," he answered. "I think I just might."

***

As Peter swung away from the Sanctum Sanctorum and towards his apartment, his thoughts were more complex and numerous than they had been in a long time. Even though he was physically tired, he had postponed his earlier desire to rest at his apartment when he had realized that his marriage had been undone. In his mind, dealing with that problem took priority over a nap. Now his quest did indeed happen to lead him back home, but he doubted he would have much time to rest. Making habitual movements and knowing the layout of New York fairly well, Peter didn't have to focus his mind on his webslinging. He used the time instead to begin to process everything which he had taken in over the past few hours.

_I must be dreaming_, Peter told himself, knowing that it wasn't true but needing to sort through things in his mind. _I must be dreaming, because that's the only explanation for all this. There can't be any realistic way that one person can actually go through all the crap I've gone through in life and still survive, so I know it must not be real. _

Peter sighed in frustration. He knew it was real.

_So, let's see…does that make this the fortieth or the fiftieth time that some despicably evil maniac has taken it upon himself to seriously ruin my life? Or has it been more times than that, even? I've lost track over the years. I just know that I can now add the cosmically powerful Mephisto to my list of Norman Osborns and Otto Octaviuses (Octavii?) and Eddie Brocks and J. Jonah Jamesons who have decided it was their great joy and delight in life to make the existence of Spider-Man as miserable as it can possibly be. _

Peter knew that this type of thinking wasn't really getting him anywhere, but it was his way to vent and cope with the various crises that came into his life on an all-too-regular basis. This particular crisis, however, just happened to be one of the biggest that he had ever faced.

_I mean, how is anyone even supposed to deal with this?_ he wondered silently. _This isn't like most of my usual problems, which can be solved by punching the villain of the week over and over until they pass out. This isn't even like my usual emotional problems, which have involved the death of just about every person I ever loved, at least once per person. No, this time, some magical entity who I've never done anything to anger in my life decided to alter reality and take away the one person I love most, who I now conveniently have no memories of ever being married to. _He frowned and wished that his conscious memories of the marriage that he and Mary Jane had supposedly shared had been unleashed by what Reed had showed him, but to no avail. He supposed that it was because his marriage technically still hadn't happened, at least not in this reality, and so he couldn't possibly remember it. He would have to either go back and watch it on Reed's machine or somehow make Mephisto put things back the way they were supposed to be.

The latter option appealed to him much more than the former.

Peter arrived at his apartment and was thankful to see that Vin was not home. It would be pretty hard to explain, not to mention compromising to his superhero identity, if his roommate the NYPD officer saw the visitor who Peter hoped to meet come to their apartment. He left his Spider-Man costume on even when he got inside, so that the visitor would be easily able to recognize him when he arrived.

Without turning on the lights, Peter rummaged through the closet that contained all of his old stuff, hoping that he hadn't misplaced or thrown away the item he needed. Then again, it was a fairly conspicuous item, so he would probably remember if he had gotten rid of it. In fact, he remembered Vin once mentioning it in passing when they had first moved in together and Peter was bringing in all his stuff. It should still be here.

Peter sorted his way through an assortment of old textbooks, old comic books, various other books, dirty clothes, his camera, and an outdated chemistry set before he finally located the item he needed. It was a small, golden object shaped like what Peter guessed was an ancient Norse symbol or character of the Norse language. He held it up in front of him.

"Um, hello?" he asked, including the name of the being he was trying to summon. "Do you remember me? I mean, I know it's kind of been a while, but you did say you owed me a favor, and so I was kind of wondering if now would be a good time to collect…"

Peter stopped speaking suddenly when he noticed the object, which he knew to be a rune, beginning to glow. The light started out faint and then got brighter. An even more piercing center of luminescence began to appear in front of him, with the light and air swirling around to create a humanoid figure. When the brilliant light finally faded, the figure was clearly in view. It was similar, though not quite the same, as the one Peter had expected.

It was a female figure with a thin, shapely body and a full head of long black hair. The face, though its features were beautiful, held an unmistakable aura of mischief and wickedness as well. The woman wore a golden headdress with two long horns extending upward, and an emerald suit from some ancient era that contrasted well with the regal golden cloak around her body. The woman's voice thundered mightily as she spoke.

"Who dares summon the presence of Loki?"

***

Mephisto sat on his throne in hell and smiled with great delight. For a few months now he had been able to add to the pleasures of his existence by relishing the silent screams of the souls of the mortals known as Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson—or, at least, the small part of their souls that was connected to the spiritual realm and was still aware of the pure love which they had lost. As much as he had enjoyed their agony, he was enjoying it even more right now, because the screams of Peter's soul had just gotten much louder. And that could only mean one thing: he knew.

Mephisto wasn't quite sure how, but somehow, Peter's knowledge of what he had lost had risen from the deepest reaches of his soul into the conscious realization of his mind, and so he was in even more despair and agony than he had been before. This made Mephisto very happy, but it also made him curious. What exactly was happening in Peter Parker's life on earth right now?

The demon effortlessly conjured up an image that would show him what was happening, and watched with glee and amusement. He saw Peter meet with the Fantastic Four and go back through the timestream. He saw Spider-Man talking with Mephisto's own sometime nemesis, Doctor Strange. And he saw the mortal return to his home and summon the presence of Loki.

He chuckled wickedly. "So, the mortal knows, and wants his life back, does he?" he said to himself. "He's going to try to fight me—_me_, with my limitless power?" He caused the image of Spider-Man to disappear and, in the heat of his emotion, conjured up even more and hotter flames than those that were already surrounding him. "Well then, if it's a fight he wants, then I'll have to be sure to give him one."

Mephisto kept laughing.

**To be continued…**

_**References:**_

_The scene Peter witnesses between himself, Mary Jane, and Mephisto took place in _Sensational Spider-Man_ #41 and _Amazing Spider-Man_ #545. _

_Aunt May was shot by the Kingpin's sniper in _Amazing Spider-Man_ #538._

_Peter telling Reed that he has no intention of calming down is a reference to the film _Spider-Man 3_, as the film had Peter say the same line upon learning that his uncle's killer was still on the loose._

_Doctor Strange's descriptions of and information about Mephisto are taken from /universe/Mephisto._

_Loki met Spider-Man and gave him a rune which could be used to contact him in _Amazing Spider-Man_ #503-504._


	3. Chapter Three

_(Author's note: Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, and favorited/alerted this story so far. This chapter is somewhat longer than the previous two, so please bear with me, but I certainly enjoyed writing it and I hope you will enjoy reading it as well. As before, references and acknowledgements are at the end.)_

**Chapter Three**

Norman Osborn was quite pleased.

The new head of U.S. security sat in his luxurious office and admired his own brilliance. _You've certainly outdone yourself this time, Norman_, he thought. He had always known himself to be great, but he had never quite imagined that he'd end up here. But he had easily killed the queen of those worthless Skrulls, and so the president had rightly appointed him to replace that incompetent Tony Stark as the controller of all the country's legal superhuman activity. He much preferred this to the old days when he had flown around on a glider in his Green Goblin costume. Now, instead of trading punches with his old foe, Spider-Man, he could easily employ his Avengers or the countless other resources at his disposal to hunt down or even kill the infernal wall-crawler, all in the name of security and freedom. What more could he wish for?

Without warning, Norman heard a loud crash from the side, began to feel intense heat, and smelled something like brimstone. Startled, he spun around in his chair and saw a grinning, crimson-skinned figure standing in front of him. Norman was quite frightened, but tried not to show it, and began to take action instead. "Who are you?" he shouted at the mysterious figure. "How did you get in here, and what do you want with me?"

"Norman Osborn," said the intruder, taking a few steps closer. "I don't believe we've had the pleasure, but allow me to introduce myself. I am Mephisto, ruler of the underworld. I've watched you here on earth, Norman, and I must say I admire you. You're certainly nowhere close to my level of greatness, of course, but a very powerful and evil man in your own right."

"What do you want with me?" Norman asked again, still confused and afraid.

"I have a proposition for you, Norman," said the one called Mephisto. "How would you like to get revenge on your old for Spider-Man once and for all?"

Norman perked up, and he wasn't so afraid anymore. He had been thinking about his hatred for Spider-Man just a few moments ago before Mephisto had shown up. "I'm listening."

"I have my own reasons for wanting to hurt Spider-Man," Mephisto said. "Let's just say that he and I had a deal, and he's trying to go back on his part of the bargain. I could easily annihilate him with my own power if I wanted to, but I thought it would be more enjoyable if I let one of his longtime enemies in on the deal. How would you and your friends like to squash a spider?"

"Friends?" Norman asked skeptically.

"Your team of Avengers, or your secret society of villains, or whoever it is you wish to use now that you're in control of so many superhumans," Mephisto explained. "Spider-Man might have some of his own friends with him, but I'm sure your people would be more than capable of fighting them off."

"How do I know you can do what you're saying?" Norman asked.

"Norman," said Mephisto, conjuring large flames around the room to prove himself. "Does it look to you as if I have any shortage of power? I am not bound by the physical laws of this plane. I can lead you to wherever Spider-Man may be in an instant, and I have learned things that you would have no way of knowing. I know who Spider-Man is under the mask, and I know what things he loves most, which I'm sure you know can be used to cause him the greatest pain. Together you and I can make Spider-Man's life as miserable as he has made yours in the past. What do you say?"

Norman appeared to contemplate this for a moment, but only for a moment. He looked at Mephisto and smiled cruelly. "You have yourself a deal."

***

"Who dares summon the presence of Loki?" the woman asked.

Peter, still wearing his Spider-Man costume, raised his hand weakly. "Um, that'd be me," he said. "I dared summon the presence of Loki, although I now see that I must've gotten the wrong number, and so I'm terribly sorry to bother you—"

"Wrong _number?_" the woman inquired, appearing confused.

"Oh. Like on a telephone," Peter explained nervously, realizing that ancient Norse gods and goddesses probably didn't have much use for modern technology. "I just meant that I had been trying to reach Loki, but I guess I got the wrong person somehow—"

"No," the woman stated bluntly. "You have reached Loki."

"I appreciate the vote of confidence, but, um…where is he?" Peter asked.

"I am Loki," said the woman.

Peter glanced at her skeptically. "Wait, did you just say that _you_ are Loki?"

"Indeed."

"Are you sure?"

"I am most certain. What is the meaning of your questioning?"

"Well, no offense," said Peter. "But if I know my Norse gods and goddesses, then I'm pretty sure Loki was…uh, you know…a guy."

"Ah, yes," said the woman, looking down at her body contemptuously. "I was indeed a male until recent events. However, I and all of Asgard were slain during the final cycle of Ragnarok, and afterward I was reborn in the female form which you now see."

"Oh," said Peter, not really understanding but deciding it best not to question a god (or goddess). "Don't you just hate it when that happens? I mean, I would just hate it if that happened to me. There are already enough Spider-Women running around as it is."

"I am not amused, mortal," said Loki.

"Oh, sorry," Peter replied, still not quite convinced that Loki was standing before him. "Well, listen, if you really are Loki, do you remember me? And can you tell me about the last time you and I met?"

"Most certainly," Loki answered. ""You and I joined forces to restore Morwen to her rightful place in time and to save the life of my daughter, Tess Black."

"Yep, that was pretty much it," Peter admitted, conceding that he really was speaking to Loki, but still somewhat unnerved by it. "And…you said that you owed me a favor for all of that, right?"

"Aye," Loki answered. "You have summoned me to collect upon this favor?"

"You guessed it."

"Then name your request, mortal, and the mighty power of Loki shall be at your aid."

Peter considered making a snide comment about finding it offensive to keep being called a mortal, but decided against it. "Well, Loki, have you by chance ever heard of a guy named Mephisto?"

"Mephisto?!?" Loki thundered angrily.

"Uh, I take it you know him?" Peter asked casually.

"Mephisto once imprisoned my soul in the deepest reaches of that hell which he rules. Every fiber of my being burns with an unquenchable hatred for him."

"Wow, that sounds pretty harsh," said Peter. "But I guess Mephisto isn't exactly the nicest guy around. All the fibers of my being hate him pretty badly, too."

Loki glanced at him, intrigued. "You, too, have a quarrel with Mephisto?"

"Well, I'm hoping it'll be more punching and kicking than just quarreling," Peter said. "But yeah, I just found out that Mephisto tricked me into letting him erase from the time/space continuum the fact that I was supposed to be married to the most beautiful woman alive, so that doesn't exactly put him on my Christmas card list, if you know what I mean."

"Christmas card?" Loki inquired uncertainly.

"Uh, never mind," said Peter. "I pretty much just summoned you here to ask if you'd be willing to help me fight Mephisto and get him to put reality back the way it was."

"Say no more, mortal," Loki answered. "Any enemy of Mephisto is a friend of mine. Though I owe you a favor already, I need no further reason to take my long-awaited vengeance upon him."

"Cool!" Peter exclaimed. "You know, I really appreciate you helping me out with this and all. I have a few friends who we'll need to pick up along the way, but—"

"Hush," said Loki, turning her head away strangely. "I am being summoned."

"You're being summoned?" Peter asked. "But I thought I _already_ summoned you. How many people do you give those magic Loki-signal things out to, anyway?"

"Very few," Loki answered. "But there is another to whom I must answer…for now. I must leave this place."

"Not to intrude, but didn't you just say you were gonna help me kick Mephisto's butt?"

"Loki does not forget her promises, mortal," the goddess said. "I shall be sure to return to you in short order, and then we shall do just as we have said."

"Um, okay," Peter conceded, fervently hoping that Loki would stay true to her word. "I guess I'll just hang out here all by myself until you get back from…wherever. Do you think you could maybe give me a ballpark figure of when you—"

In a sudden burst of golden light, Loki had vanished.

"Oh. Or not," Peter said to himself, sitting down on his bed and sighing. "Well, this is great. Just great."

***

Loki teleported into Norman Osborn's grand meeting room, where her companions in the Cabal were already seated around a large, circular table. She took the empty seat between the imposing figure of Dr. Doom, who had temporarily earned her allegiance with the business deals they had agreed upon, and the White Queen, the only other female in their secret society. On the other side of the table sat the stern-faced Namor, prince of Atlantis, the Hood, who was a relatively new player in the criminal world and mostly unknown to Loki, and their cunning leader, Norman Osborn.

"Greetings, Loki," said Dr. Doom.

"Greetings, Doom," Loki returned formally.

"Thank you all for coming today," Norman said politely upon realizing that Loki had arrived. "For the sake of urgency, I shall dispense with any further formalities and small talk and tell you all why I've called you here." He cleared his throat, then resumed. "Today we are here to deal with a certain threat to justice and to the peaceful society which I and my fellow Americans have worked so hard to establish."

"I have no interest in the establishments of your pettily warring surface-dwelling nations," Namor interrupted coldly.

"Nor does Doom," added Dr. Doom, monarch of Latveria. "What importance is this to us, Osborn?"

"Gentlemen, please hear me out," Osborn continued, maintaining his composure. "A danger like this one affects not only America, but possibly the entire free world as well, if such rebellious behaviors are left unchecked. The individual behind this threat is no doubt well-known to all of you, and has been a nagging thorn in my side for a great many years now. He calls himself Spider-Man."

Loki perked up at the mention of the mortal to whom she had pledged her services just a short while ago.

"Now, make no mistake," Norman went on. "This is not the true Spider-Man, the one who serves his country faithfully as part of my team of Avengers. This man is an outlaw who has been known as a public menace for years and refuses to comply with the American laws of superhuman registration, yet still has the audacity to claim the same name as one of the country's true heroes."

"Hold on," Emma Frost spoke up. "Spider-Man is only one person—a superhuman one, of course, but still, he's only one person, and not even a mutant. Can't the local police deal with him on their own? Since when is he a national threat?"

"Spider-Man has managed to evade the local police for quite some time now, so he is not one to be trifled with," Norman explained. "But I have reason to believe that he is an even greater threat now. A certain benefactor of mine has informed me that Spider-Man may have allied a group of other rogue superhumans. This group has agreed to aid us in bringing him down, but because we do not know how many rogues are with Spider-Man or what their abilities are, we'll need the combined strength of all of you _and_ my team of Avengers in order to ensure our victory."

Loki took in Norman's heavily propagandized briefing and wondered what to do. She had already pledged her allegiance to Spider-Man, so she was honor-bound to fight for him and not against him for the time being—besides, from what Spider-Man had told her and from the aura of evil she sensed in Norman's words, it seemed probable that the benefactor Norman was speaking of was Mephisto, for whom she would never agree to fight again. Loki would obviously have to go against the Cabal in this particular instance, but debated whether or not she should try to attack them directly right now. Though she was an Asgardian goddess and her power was great, there were other powerful magic users among them, such as Dr. Doom and the Hood. If Mephisto was backing them too, then it would be utter foolishness to try to challenge them all alone. Loki would have to return to Spider-Man and the allies he had mentioned and hope that they would be powerful enough to emerge victorious.

"My informant agrees to transport us directly to Spider-Man's location," said Norman, completely oblivious to Loki's subversive thoughts. "So if all of you can prepare yourselves for this mission, I will assemble the Avengers and we can leave as soon as possible. Thank you."

Norman turned around and began to walk away, when he thought he noticed a faint flash of golden light behind him. Startled, he turned back around to face the other five members of the Cabal—but there were only four of them. Someone had departed in the brief instant in which he had turned his back.

"Where is Loki?" Norman asked.

***

Peter had taken his mask off and was now lying on his bed, dejected. No, on second thought, dejected was how he felt when he couldn't scrape together enough cash to pay the rent, or when the secrets of his double life forced him to miss Aunt May's birthday party. What he felt now was far beyond dejected, because nothing else he had encountered in life so far brought quite the discouragement and sorrow that he felt from realizing that he had willingly foregone a happy marriage, getting up his hopes of maybe turning things around with Loki's help, and then having Loki desert him for an undisclosed period of time.

"Okay, Peter, take it easy," he told himself. "It's not like there's been a major disturbance in the time/space continuum and you need to call in all your god friends to help you fight the demon behind it." He paused his sarcastic ranting for dramatic effect, and then added, "Oh wait…yes it is." He sighed and tried to calm down, but he couldn't. His mind was racing frantically with all the different possibilities of what his life could have been and what it might come to after this whole episode, and as much as he tried, he was powerless to slow it down.

The logical thing to do would be to wait for Loki, because Loki was supposed to come back like he (or _she_, Peter corrected himself) had said. If nothing else, Peter could always summon her again if she took too long…right? Right. Waiting and not acting until necessary would be the logical course of action. However, this entire crisis had thrown Peter's emotions all out of whack, and in some ways he didn't feel like doing the logical thing. He couldn't shake the desire to get out there and do something, to websling his way to the deepest reaches of reality itself and give Mephisto a good, thorough beatdown, as illogical as the prospect was.

And, as illogical as it may seem, there was still one person in the midst of this huge super-crisis who he couldn't shake from his mind.

Mary Jane Watson.

Peter wondered what she was doing these days, and he wondered what she would be doing, or had been doing, if/when they had been married. He wondered how things had played out—or did play out, or whatever—in the alternate timeline and the exact circumstances of how he had proposed and how they had gotten married and what their life had been like after that. He wondered how she would react if she knew what he knew now. If this all fell apart and Loki couldn't beat Mephisto, was it possible that there was still hope for Peter and Mary Jane? Could they possibly somehow still replicate the life and the happiness that they had supposedly had, albeit without all the years up to this point?

Peter didn't know

But he wanted to find out.

And there was only one way to do that.

_This is crazy_, Peter thought to himself as he dug through the assorted books in his closet once more. _This will solve nothing, and will probably only make things worse._ And yet, he was still looking for that old address book that Aunt May had gotten him one year. _She doesn't want to hear from you, Peter. She said that when you broke up!_ Ah, there it was, right where he had left it. And in the back, towards the Ws, was Mary Jane's cell phone number.

_You're only going to make a fool of yourself, Peter_, his mind said. But Peter didn't listen to his mind. Instead, he nervously picked up his cell phone and entered the ten digits listed in the address book. Hopefully she hadn't gotten a new phone since then. All he had to do now was press the 'call' button.

_Don't do it_, Peter thought. _Just hang up now._

Peter pressed the call button.

His stomach wrenched as he heard the phone begin to ring on the other side. He considered hanging up even now, but decided that it would be even more wishy-washy than if he hadn't called to begin with. This wouldn't be so bad. He would just talk to her and have a nice, normal conversation, like two mature individuals were certainly capable of doing. Maybe he wouldn't even have to talk to her—maybe he would get her voicemail, or maybe she had gotten a new phone and this number wouldn't even go through. Maybe he wouldn't have to talk to her at all.

"Hello?" asked a familiar female voice.

Peter wanted to smack himself.

"Um, hi…" he managed. "Mary Jane?"

"Yes, this is Mary Jane," she answered. "Who is this?"

"Um…uh…it's Peter." His words were barely above a mumble.

"Who?" Mary Jane asked.

Peter still wanted to smack himself. "It's me! Peter! Peter Parker! You know, uh, we used to date…?"

There was a noticeably negative turn in the tone of Mary Jane's voice. Peter could tell that she was trying to be polite, but was probably having to try very hard. "Oh…Peter!" she said with an awkwardly nervous giggle. "Wow…it's been such a long time…how are you?"

"I'm fine," Peter lied, hating every agonizing moment of this small talk they were having. "Yep, doing just fine…great, actually. So…how are you?"

"Oh, I'm doing great too!" Mary Jane said, a false cheerfulness in her tone. "I've got a great acting job, a great boyfriend…" She put a slight emphasis on the word _boyfriend_, as if to remind Peter of where the two of them stood. "Yep, life is good."

"Good!" Peter exclaimed. "That's great. Yep…really great."

"Peter," Mary Jane said firmly, her patience with him wearing thin. "Is there some particular reason why you called me? Because, you know, last time I saw you, we weren't exactly on speaking terms…" Her meaning was clear.

"Yeah, Mary Jane, I know," Peter said. "And I'm sorry for calling you, but I was just wondering…"

Wondering what? He hadn't fully decided what he had wanted to say to Mary Jane. Why had he even called her in the first place?

"I was just wondering if you think things ever could have worked out between us," Peter managed to blurt.

Mary Jane was silent for a moment, wondering how to deal tactfully with the question, or possibly even considering a sincere answer to what Peter had asked. "I don't know, Peter," she said. "Things didn't work out. You know that. We both have our own separate lives now, and that's the way it is." Peter's heart sunk. "But maybe if things had gone differently…" She didn't finish the thought.

_If things had gone differently_, Peter repeated mentally. That was the key, because things had indeed gone differently in the way the timeline was supposed to have been. He could tell that Mary Jane had little intention of giving him a second chance. But if there was still any hope of him somehow repairing the timeline…

"Yeah, if only," Peter said. "Well, I guess I should get going, but thanks for your time, Mary Jane…sorry to bother you and all."

"Don't be sorry, Peter," she said, changing her tone. Did he detect a hint of longing from her, too?

"Thanks," said Peter. "Well, Mary Jane…have a nice life, I guess."

"You too, Peter," she said. "Goodbye."

He hung up the phone.

Peter still didn't know how to feel. He was still sad and confused beyond the norm, but Mary Jane's last few words had offered him perhaps the slightest glimmer of hope. If anything their brief conversation had made him even more determined to find Mephisto and make him undo what he had done.

_Only…Loki still isn't here_, Peter reminded himself. _So I guess I'm back to square one._

Suddenly, Peter's room was once again enveloped in a familiar golden glow, and the feminine form of Loki stood before him once more.

"Whoa, you're back!" Peter exclaimed happily.

"Did not I say I would return to you in due time?" Loki asked. "I am a woman of my word."

"Well, I'm sure glad you kept your word," Peter said, "But I'm not so sure about that woman part. No offense, but the whole gender-blender thing is still freaking me out a little bit."

"It is well for you that we are currently in allegiance to each other," Loki said. "For I would not be so kind with anyone else who spoke such flippant words to me."

"Oh, sorry about that," Peter answered. "But yeah, let's focus on the allegiance thing. Like I was saying, I'm really glad you came back. I mean, just before you got here, I was dramatically lamenting to myself about the fact that you still weren't here…but now you're here, so I don't have to be quite so dramatic anymore!"

"Are all mortals as irritatingly verbose as you are?" Loki asked.

"Nope, just the amazingly cool ones, such as myself," Peter answered.

"You would do well to limit your banter in such a precarious situation as ours," Loki said seriously. "I have returned not only to aid you against Mephisto, but to warn you of further impending danger."

Peter's heart grew heavy immediately. This was not what he wanted to hear. "What kind of danger?" he asked.

"I shall try to explain," Loki answered. "The summons for which I left you was for a secret meeting of…others such as myself."

"You mean other Asgardian gods?" Peter asked.

"No," said Loki. "I mean—"

"Was it a support group for other people who have suffered from spontaneous gender change?"

Loki glared at him coldly.

"Shutting up!" Peter announced quickly.

"I am part of a small society of beings of great power and influence, though most of them are human and there are no others are gods or goddesses. We are the sort of people with whom one such as you might often find yourself at odds in your heroic duties."

"Wait a second," said Peter. "Are you saying you're part of a secret team of supervillains?"

"We are not villains!" Loki thundered. "We are merely…complicated. But we are wasting time with this conversation. The Cabal has made it clear that they wish harm upon you, and I believe that they are backed by Mephisto. Most likely he is after you as part of the same conflict for which you are after him."

"Yeah, that wouldn't surprise me too much," Peter answered nervously. "But…um…since you're part of this group, do you wish harm upon me too?"

"Nay," said Loki. "As I have no love for Mephisto and have already pledged you my allegiance, I shall fight against my fellows and for your sake in this matter."

"Thanks, I really appreciate it," Peter said sincerely.

"But we must move quickly," Loki told him. "The Cabal, along with Norman Osborn's Avengers, could find you at any moment."

"Norman Osborn?!?" Peter exclaimed at the mention of his old arch-nemesis. "What does he have to do with all this?"

"He is the leader of our Cabal," Loki informed him.

Peter smacked his head to his face in disgust. "Can this day get any worse?" he asked rhetorically.

"Perhaps you would not like that question answered," Loki said.

"No thanks, it was rhetorical," Peter explained.

"We must act quickly," Loki reemphasized. "You said you had allies who would be willing to fight with us?"

"Yeah, I do," said Peter. "Other superheroes, like me. And one of them can use magic."

"Then let us gather them at once, for we know not when Mephisto and Osborn's armies will find us."

"You can teleport us, right?"

"Aye."

"Good," said Peter. "That'll be a lot cheaper than paying for web fluid." He put his mask back on and stood next to Loki. "I'm ready."

***

"Wong," Stephen Strange addressed his friend and servant after approaching him in the Sanctum Sanctorum's library. "Have you finished sorting the ancient archives yet?"

"I'm almost finished," the Chinese man answered, holding several weathered scrolls in his hands. "I've got everything alphabetized all the way from Agamotto to Vishanti."

"Thank you, Wong," Strange answered. "After that—" He paused, as if listening for something.

"What is it?" Wong inquired.

"I hear a familiar voice," said Strange. He moved warily out of the library and into the main room of the house. He was not entirely pleased with the sight that greeted his entrance.

"Are you serious?" Spider-Man asked of the female figure standing next to him. "I mean, I didn't even tell you where he lived. How did you know where to teleport us?"

"The magics that serve me are not bound by the laws of this plane, mortal," she answered. "They knew of which magic user you had spoken and were able to take us directly to him."

"Hey, that's pretty conveni—"

Spider-Man stopped speaking when he noticed Doctor Strange noticing him. He turned to face the Doctor and, though the red mask concealed his facial features, Strange didn't doubt that he looked very embarrassed and awkward underneath.

"Hey, Doc, old buddy, old pal!" Spider-Man said, coming towards Strange with his arms outstretched. "I can explain, really. You know, a funny thing happened to me on my way here tonight—"

"I know why you're here," Strange interrupted, remembering Spider-Man's queries about Mephisto and assuming that the other hero had come to call on Strange's help once again. The sorcerer gestured towards Spider-Man's companion. "But who is this?"

"Oh," Spider-Man answered. "That's Loki. We go way back."

"Loki?" Strange asked, perplexed.

"Yep," Spider-Man said.

"As in, Loki the Asgardian god, Thor's evil half-brother?"

"Yep," Spider-Man said.

"Do you not realize that your companion is clearly female?" Strange asked Spider-Man.

Spider-Man leaned in close to Doctor Strange and whispered in his ear. "Believe me, it's a long story. Try not to mention it, because she gets kind of touchy about it."

"I am not touchy about it!" Loki thundered from across the room.

"Sheesh, you don't have to yell," said Spider-Man.

Doctor Strange approached Loki. "Loki, why have you come here?"

"I am indebted to the one called Spider-Man, and have agreed to help him battle Mephisto in order to restore the timeline," Loki answered. "Spider-Man said he had allies who would help us, including a magician. You."

"I have also agreed to help Spider-Man," Strange said. He glanced at his two companions. "Shall we use our magic to bring us to Mephisto, then?"

"Not just yet, Doc," said Spider-Man. "She-Loki here tells me that Mephisto's got a small army of villains helping him out."

Loki glared at Spider-Man. "She-Loki?"

Spider-Man shrugged. "I thought the name change might be appropriate. I mean, there's already Hulk and She-Hulk, so then you could have regular male Loki along with She-Loki. What do you think?"

"Perhaps I have already used up my indebtedness to you by allowing you to mock me so freely," Loki told Spider-Man.

"Oh, um…just kidding," Spider-Man said weakly.

"A small army?" Doctor Strange pressed, not wanting to waste time.

"Yeah," said Spider-Man. "Led by none other than good ol' Norman Osborn himself. Doc, I was hoping you could gather the rest of the team and meet back up with us after that. Can your powers teleport and find us again, too?"

"It shouldn't be a problem," Strange answered. "But where are you going?"

"Four Freedoms Plaza," said Spider-Man. "I've got a feeling we're going to need all the help we can get."

***

"Wotta revoltin' development this is," Ben Grimm muttered to himself as he climbed slowly out of bed, much earlier than he would have liked to. He had only gone to bed half an hour or so ago, but he found it difficult to sleep with the loud and rowdy noises of Johnny's late night television addiction emanating through the hallways of the Fantastic Four's living quarters. He would try to be peaceable about the situation, but he and Johnny had had this problem before. If Matchstick didn't turn the volume down, then Ben might just have to switch from his bed time to a very different time that involved more clobbering than snoozing.

"Hey, Matchstick," Ben's gruff voice announced as he stepped into the living room. "How many times I gotta tell ya ta keep yer noise down when I'm tryin' ta catch my beauty rest?"

"Hey," said the young blond man seated in the large armchair, turning to face his orange accuser. "Is it my fault that you always go to bed before midnight like a frail old man? Besides, I don't think any amount of beauty rest is really going to change much for you."

Ben smiled. This was all he needed. "Okay, you asked for it, hothead," said Ben. He began to run over to Johnny with the intent of grabbing the TV remote from his hand and either smashing the hated device or throwing it forcefully into the TV screen.

Sue popped out from the next room, where she had been trying to read peacefully. "Boys, please don't wake the baby!" she called.

Ben leaned over Johnny's armchair, grabbing for the remote, but the younger man was already in the air and on fire. He easily blasted a small beam of heat into his opponent's face.

"Yeeeeeeeowwww!" Ben screamed angrily, crashing onto the ground and overturning the armchair with a sound like an avalanche.

Somewhere nearby came the very audible sound of Valeria, crying from being woken from her sleep. "Too late," Sue muttered dejectedly.

In the midst of the chaos, a flash of golden light appeared in Ben's peripheral vision. "Never seen ya do that one before, Matchstick," he said.

"Um, actually, that was us," said the familiar voice of Spider-Man, who had appeared along with an unfamiliar, though imposing, woman, and was standing in the middle of the living room. Ben, Johnny, and Sue all turned around and stared at them with varying degrees of surprise, embarrassment, and confusion.

"Um, is this a bad time?" Spider-Man asked. "I would've called first, but this is kind of a big deal—"

"Whaddya need, Webhead?" Ben asked reluctantly.

"Yeah, and who's that stunning lady you've got with you?" Johnny asked. "You didn't take that whole being married to a supermodel thing one step too far, did you?"

"Silence, mortal!" the woman in question boomed, shutting Johnny up.

"Really, I am sorry to bother you like this, but it's about Mephisto, like we had talked about before," Spider-Man explained hastily. "And this is Loki, but pleeease don't mention anything about her current gender, because I'm getting tired of explaining it and I really think she might desert me if I make fun of her one more time."

"Oookay…" Johnny stated.

"Look, is Reed around?" Spider-Man asked.

"Right here," said Reed Richards, entering from behind Spider-Man and Loki. "I sensed an unfamiliar energy signature on the surveillance cameras from my lab, and came to investigate. I've already overheard most of your conversation."

"You have surveillance cameras in the living room?" Sue asked skeptically.

"Please, not now, Sue," Reed said. "We promised to help Spider-Man against Mephisto, and help him we will."

"Thanks a bunch, Doc," Spider-Man said. "I really could use the help. I don't suppose any of you can do a whole lot against magic, but Mephisto has a whole bunch of other bad guys with him, so the extra muscle doesn't really hurt."

"We'll do whatever we can, Spider-Man," said Reed. "But don't be so quick to dismiss our tactics against magic. If I may ask, though, how are you planning on finding Mephisto?"

"I'm not sure," Spider-Man admitted. "But Loki or Doctor Strange should be able to. He's supposed to be rounding up the rest of the New Avengers, so we should go outside to meet him. That is, unless you want all the New Avengers and maybe some cosmic level bad guys rampaging through your house."

"Not particularly, no," Sue answered. "Let's get moving."

"You all go ahead," said Reed. "I'd like to get one item from my lab that I think may be of use to us, but I'll meet up with you all shortly." Reed went off the way he had come, and after Sue gave the robotic nannies the command to go take care of Valeria, the five of them started towards the headquarters' main entrance, with the three Fantastic Four members leading the way.

"So, let me see if I get this straight, Webhead," Ben said. "Mephisto messed with the timeline and screwed up yer life, so we got a bunch o' assorted superheroes and a mystic god/goddess whatchamacallit against a bunch o' assorted supervillains and another big mystic cosmic guy?"

"Yep, that sounds about right," Spider-Man admitted.

Ben sighed dramatically. "Wotta revoltin' development this is."

***

"We have no need of Loki," Namor assured his current leader, Norman Osborn. "All of our combined strength and power will certainly be enough to overcome that insignificant Spider-Man and to hold our own against whichever other so-called heroes he may have with him. Anyone who would desert their teammates in the time of battle is not worthy of us, anyway."

"I suppose you are right," Osborn conceded. "Besides, with the power of the one I told you about backing us up, we will certainly have the victory."

"I am sensing familiar mystic energies in this place, Osborn," Dr. Doom, who was a prominent sorcerer, stated suspiciously. "Who exactly is this mysterious benefactor you keep referring to?"

Osborn smiled. "You'll find out soon enough. Now let's get ready to fight."

***

In a matter of minutes, Peter, dressed as his alter ego the amazing Spider-Man, was standing in the middle of the familiar streets of New York, not very far away from the Fantastic Four's famous headquarters. Night had fallen and the moon's light pierced the darkened sky, reflecting what was in Peter's heart at that moment—unfathomable darkness and despair, with a ray of light in the form of his allies that just might be able to overcome the darkness. Loki was standing next to him, and the Fantastic Four—including Reed, who was carrying a complex device that Peter didn't recognize. Doctor Strange had met up with them just a few moments ago, teleporting magically in like he had said he would, and with him had come the rest of the New Avengers. Wolverine, Luke Cage, Spider-Woman (_the real one, not the Skrull,_ Peter reminded himself), Ronin (_not Hawkeye anymore_), and the recently joined Ms. Marvel, Mockingbird, and Captain America all stood with him, ready to face whatever danger may come. Peter thought he would feel a lot safer if Steve Rogers, the original Captain America, had been with them, but he was beginning to grow confident in the abilities of Bucky as well.  
"Hey, Spidey," Wolverine addressed his teammate gruffly. "Strange said you needed the team for something big. All I can say is, for you to bring me out here this late at night, it better be good."

"Um, yes," Peter said, responding to Wolverine but raising his voice to try to address all the other New Avengers as well. "I suppose you're all wondering why I gathered you here today…or, tonight, I guess."

Luke Cage spoke up. "Strange said there was gonna be a big fight over something real important to you, Spidey," he said. "Whatever it is, we're a team, so count me in."

"Thanks, Cage," Peter said. "What Doctor Strange told you is pretty much right. To make a long story short, I've got a bone to pick with Mephisto—big, powerful bad guy, for those who don't know—and I'm pretty sure he's got Norman Osborn and the Dark Avengers on his side, too. Despite being the amazingly strong and mighty warrior that I am, I could use a little help fighting them off, if it comes to that…which it probably will."

"All the help you've acquired won't help you this time," came the familiarly chilling voice of Norman Osborn, amplified with a mechanical sound by the red, white, and blue armor that made him the Iron Patriot. He stood facing Spider-Man's group of heroes, backed by the menacing presence of his own group. To Norman's left stood the government-sanctioned team that had been unofficially dubbed the Dark Avengers—Mac Gargan, calling himself Spider-Man; Moonstone, posing as Ms. Marvel; Wolverine's son Daken, also calling himself Wolverine; the sharp-shooting Bullseye wearing Clint's old Hawkeye costume; along with the extremely powerful Sentry and the formidable Ares. To Osborn's right stood several other characters who Spider-Man recognized—Dr. Doom, Namor the Submariner, Emma Frost, and the Hood—though he didn't know of any connection between them all and assumed that they were part of Loki's secret group of villains.

"Uh-oh," Peter said.

"Spider-Man," Norman addressed him.

"Yes, boss?" asked the black-suited Mac Gargan, standing nearby.

"Not you, you imbecile!" Norman chided. "The _other_ Spider-Man."

"Sorry, boss," said Mac.

"Spider-Man, you have been a thorn in my side for some time now," he said. "I am looking forward to conquering your band of rebels and eradicating you once and for all. But even if you do manage to defeat all of us, there's someone else you'll still have to deal with." Noxious red clouds began to swirl behind Norman as he spoke, forming into a familiar humanoid shape. "My most generous benefactor, Mephisto."

"Uh-oh," Peter repeated.

Dr. Doom looked behind himself in surprise. "Mephisto?!?" he repeated. "This foul demon is who you are working for, Osborn?"

"It's who we're all working for, Doom," Osborn told him. "Now, no more talk. Let's—"

"No," said Doom, stepping forward from the rest of his team. "I will not be allied with such a despicable one as Mephisto." To Peter's surprise, the Latverian monarch approached him, with no apparent intent of harm. His spider-sense wasn't going off, after all. "Besides," Doom continued. "This vigilante once took it upon himself to prevent harm from befalling me. I owe him a boon and have no wish to fight against him."

"You did _what?!?_" Johnny Storm asked of Spider-Man, indignant. "You protected Dr. Doom? And you're friends with Loki, too? What's going on here, Spidey?"

"What can I say?" Spider-Man asked. "I guess I'm just a friendly guy." Looking at Dr. Doom, he said, "Look, Doom, I appreciate you coming to help me at all, but I'm confused about your beef with Mephisto. I mean, no offense, but aren't you a pretty despicable evil yourself?"

"For many years, Mephisto tortured and imprisoned the soul of my beloved mother," Doom answered. "For that I shall never forgive him and have made him my sworn enemy. And, since I am indebted to you as well, I shall fight with you, even alongside these other fools—" He glanced towards his sworn enemies, the Fantastic Four. "—so that we may triumph over Mephisto."

"Hey, sounds good to me," Spider-Man answered.

"Doom!" Osborn shouted. "You and Loki shall both regret the day you betrayed me. This battle is only beginning!"

Mephisto, who was now fully visible as the head of Osborn's group, addressed Spider-Man. "And you, Spider-Man, will regret the day you tried to betray the agreement we made. No one trifles with Mephisto and lives."

Peter looked around him. He was very grateful for the friends, acquaintances, and uneasy allies who had assembled, willing to fight for him. Then he looked across the street at the monstrous form of Mephisto and all the other sinister faces who were being ordered to kill him and would probably relish the act of it as soon as they were given the chance. He adjusted his stance and mentally steeled himself for the impending battle.

"Well, here goes nothing," Peter said.

**To be continued...**

_**References:**_

_Norman Osborn killed Veranke, the queen of the Skrulls, and replaced Tony Stark as the head of U.S. security and superhuman activities in _Secret Invasion_ #8. He subsequently took on the alias of the Iron Patriot, turned the Thunderbolts into the Dark Avengers and formed the Cabal, a secret society of supervillains comparable to the heroes' Illuminati. In order to fool the public and try to usurp the place of the regular heroes, Norman christened several Dark Avengers members with the aliases and costumes of well-known superheroes._

_In _Amazing Spider-Man _#503-504, Spider-Man helped Loki fight Morwen and rescue Loki's daughter, for which Loki said he owed Spider-Man a favor. Loki's explanation of the Cabal as complicated rather than villainous in this story is a reference to #503, in which Loki tells Spider-Man that he is not evil, merely complicated._

_The Asgardians all died in the final cycle of Ragnarok in _Thor_ #582-587. When Loki returned in Thor #592, it was in the form of a woman._

_Loki was captured by Mephisto and held prisoner in hell in _Thor_ #447-455._

Thor _#601 revealed that Loki and Dr. Doom had agreed to make arrangements for all the Asgardians to be relocated to the nation of Latveria, which is ruled by Doom. _

_Clint Barton, formerly Hawkeye, assumed the identity of Ronin in _New Avengers _#30._

_After the apparent death of Steve Rogers, the original Captain America, in _Captain America _#574, his former sidekick, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes, took up the identity of Captain America in his stead in #583._

_Ms. Marvel, Mockingbird, and the current Captain America joined the New Avengers in _New Avengers_ #48._

_I learned of Dr. Doom's enmity towards Mephisto from his character bio at .com/universe/Doctor_Doom_(Victor_von_Doom)._

_Spider-Man saved Dr. Doom from a terrorist bombing in _Amazing Spider-Man _#491._

_**Acknowledgement:**_

_Thanks are due to user Wolvmbm, whose reviews of and comments concerning the first two chapters of this story gave me the idea to make this a post-Secret Invasion story and involve the Dark Avengers and the Cabal. Originally I had planned the only villains to be Mephisto and probably some random demon henchmen of his, instead of having him acquire the help of Norman Osborn. Wolvmbm's suggestions have helped me to up the stakes a little bit and will hopefully make the battle in the final chapter even more epic. _


	4. Chapter Four

__

Author's Note: Readers, thanks for your feedback about this story. Please bear with me again, because this chapter is even longer than the last one, and I'm not the best at writing battle scenes, so things may seem a little repetitive. I hope they don't to you, but they may. Also, thanks for your patience with this chapter. It was a little bit late, but once I actually sat down and started writing it, I finished it much quicker than I would have expected for a chapter of this size. Enjoy!

**Chapter Four**

Chaos ensued.

There wasn't quite any other way to describe it. Peter Parker, dressed in the brightly-colored tights that made him easily recognizable as Spider-Man, stood among several of his most trusted allies, a few of his most hated enemies, and a bunch of other villains who he wasn't particularly fond of, either. Precise but violent movement flooded his peripheral vision as several of the combatants rushed readily towards each other, ready to fight. Peter felt the rush of adrenaline, that unique mixture of excitement and fear that he felt each time he faced off against a supervillain, but to a greatly heightened degree this time, since the battle was on a much larger scale than, per se, the bank robberies he was used to stopping.

Peter had been in grand-scale super-powered battles before, of course. He thought back to the time when the Beyonder gathered them all on Battleworld to pit them against the assembled villains, and more recently, to the Civil War that had caused such a violent rift among the superhuman community, and the invasion of the Skrulls who Earth's heroes had just barely managed to fight back. The fact that he had done this before in no way lessened the thrill and apprehension he felt now. Each battle was a critical, delicate situation in which one mistake or wrong move could prove fatal, but the right course of action would lead to victory and the fulfillment of the hopes they had all been fighting for. And this time, they were fighting for him—for Spider-Man, whose life had been thoroughly messed up by Mephisto and who was determined to take it back or die trying. More than he could express in words or even concrete thoughts, Peter was grateful for the sense of cameraderie that came with the life of a superhero, for his teammates and allies who were willing to fight for him just as if the battle were their own.

And even now, his allies _were_ fighting. As Peter looked around, he saw that several of the combatants were already locked in battle against a particular opponent. Luke Cage was testing his own enhanced strength against that of Ares, and the Thing was enjoying his trademark clobberin' time with Namor, longtime rival of the Fantastic Four. Ronin, formerly known as Hawkeye, was matching weapons with the Dark Avengers version of Hawkeye, the original Ms. Marvel was battling the counterfeit Ms. Marvel, and the young, reckless mutant known as Daken was clashing claws with the old, reckless mutant who was his father, Wolverine. Sometimes in a great battle like this one, Peter had trouble trying to decide which opponent to fight, considering who was already matched with an opponent to the prospect of where his powers could do the most damage, and trying to decide in the split seconds before the ensuing chaos forced his hand when he was unprepared. He would have loved to just walk up and beat the heck out of Mephisto with nothing but the fists he had used on so many villains before, but he knew he wouldn't stand a chance against such a powerful being (that's why he had brought Loki and Doctor Strange). That being the case, he'd just have to find someone else to fight.

This time, he didn't have time to decide.

"Spider-Man," came a darkly familiar voice behind him. His spider-sense had not detected it. Peter spun around quickly to see the living, symbiotic costume he himself had once worn on the body of Mac Gargan, with whom he had traded punches on many occasions in the past. Peter braced himself. "Get ready to die," Gargan said before raising his fists and launching himself angrily against Peter.

* * *

Separate from the rest of the battle, three mighty figures stood facing each other, each determined to prevail. The imposing figure of Victor von Doom, majestic green cape flowing behind him, stood next to the beautiful, regal figure of Loki, and both of them faced the horrible demon Mephisto. Each possessed some knowledge and ability in the mystical arts, and while Mephisto could probably crush either Loki or Doom fighting separately, the two hoped that, together, they could emerge victorious.

"Doom! Combine your might with mine!" Loki shouted desperately, knowing that they didn't have much time to waste. With a few words from some ancient, long-dead tongue, Loki cast a spell that merged Doctor Doom's power of eldritch energy blasts with her own mystical energy, creating a bright beam of pure magical energy that shot right at Mephisto. It was relatively simple and low on the scale of mystical attacks, but hopefully it would hold for the time being.

Not missing a beat, Mephisto retaliated, apparently unhurt by the energy that was being thrown against him. Outstretching his crimson claws, the demon created a sphere of red light, also composed of mystical energy. He used it as a shield to deflect the blasts against himself, and then channeled it into a similar blast against his two opponents, who had to struggle to keep up.

"Ah, Loki," Mephisto said tauntingly while maintaining his attack. "What a pleasure to see you again. And you too, Victor, although I certainly do miss seeing your mother around my place."

"You fiend!" Doom cried angrily. "I will see to it that you burn for eternity for what you have done to my mother!"

"Somehow, I thought that was already a given," Mephisto remarked sarcastically. Ignoring his response and rashly letting himself be goaded by Mephisto's taunt, Dr. Doom broke away from Loki and ran full speed at Mephisto, ready to use his physical strength or mystical powers or any means he could to tear the demon apart. With a cruel laugh, Mephisto stretched out his hand, sending Doom falling backward and sliding far away from himself.

"Be careful, Victor," Mephisto chided. "Aren't you and Loki supposed to be working together?" He laughed again and began to focus his attack more on Loki, whose power was barely standing against Mephisto's own.

* * *

"Now, this is what I call a good time," Ben Grimm announced gruffly, slamming his rocky fist into the chiseled frame of Namor, Prince of Atlantis. "It's been a while since I got to give anyone a good clobberin'."

"Your foolishness will be your downfall, Benjamin Grimm, just as it always has been," Namor stated tersely, standing his ground. "You cannot hope to triumph over Namor, Prince of Atlantis."

"Funny," said Ben. "I seem ta remember beatin' you at least a couple times before. An' believe me when I say that Aunt Petunia's favorite nephew ain't a fool." Ben slammed into Namor even harder, sending his opponent sprawling back and landing a few yards away. He knew that Namor was tough and would still be far from down and out, but Ben had earned maybe a few moments' reprieve from battle. "How's it goin' fer the rest o' you, Stretcho?" he called.

The other three members of the Fantastic Four were nearby, also trying to hold their own against the small army of villains. "Sue, Johnny, see if you can hold them off and keep us safe for a while," Reed said, his stretchy arm holding a moderately-sized, very scientific-looking device. "I've got to—"

"Got to what?" asked his wife, Sue, the Invisible Woman, throwing up a quick forcefield to shield herself. "There's so many bad guys here, we need all the help we can get."

Reed began to protest. "Yes, but this could turn the tide of—"

"Hey, Reed," called Johnny, the Human Torch, his flaming body hovering in the air. He saw a determined, golden-clad figure coming towards him in the air. "Isn't that that Sentry guy we all helped a while back?"

Reed turned his stretchy neck around to look. "Yes, Johnny. Don't engage him. He's extremely dangero—"

"But, Reed, he's on the bad guys' team now!" Johnny exclaimed. "And we're in a battle." Hastily, the impulsive youth rushed forward and blasted the Sentry with a steady ray of flame.

"Johnny, be careful!" Sue called up to him, fervently hoping that her brother's flames would be enough to counter the mysterious Sentry's poweful energy blasts. She was about to go up to help him when she felt someone bump into her rather violently. Somewhat stunned, Sue spun around to see the familiar face of Emma Frost, currently in her diamond-skinned form.

"Emma," Sue addressed coldly. The two of them had never quite seen eye to eye in their meetings in the past, and they were on opposite sides in this battle.

"Sue," Emma returned coldly.

From out of the chaos in the direction that Emma had come from, Spider-Woman glided to the ground. "Take that," she said bitterly to Emma. Sue gathered that the two had already exchanged a few blows in this battle, and that Spider-Woman had probably been the cause of sending Emma sprawling into Sue.

"No," Emma breathed, getting back up to her feet and reverting to her normal form. "Take _this_." She didn't launch a return blow at Spider-Woman, but instead just glared at her opponent and concentrated. Spider-Woman put her hands to her head and cried out, clearly in agony from Emma's telepathic attack.

"Need a hand?" Sue asked, running over to Spider-Woman and thrusting a forcefield barrage against Emma.

Spider-Woman looked momentarily relieved. "Thanks for the save."

Seeing that his teammates were occupied and holding their own, Reed returned to examining the device he carried. "Now, if I can just—"

Suddenly, Reed was slammed by a force that would've severely injured him if not for his pliable, elastic body, which enabled him to remain keep his feet planted firmly on the ground while his torso expanded to deal with his unknown assailant. Frantically, Reed enlargened his hands to completely cover the device, hoping to keep it safe from outside damage, and twisted his head to see who had hit him. This person called himself Captain Marvel, but it was not the Captain Marvel he had fought alongside many years ago. "Noh-Varr," he uttered.

"You," the Kree boy said to Reed accusingly. "You and your friends came to visit me when I was imprisoned at the Cube."

"Yes," said Reed. "And I'm grateful for the part you played in turning back the recent Skrull invasion, but the man you're working for—"

"You're opposing the Avengers," Noh-Varr said, clearly not happy with Reed. The Kree Warrior stretched out his hand, and the mechanized gauntlet that he wore transformed quickly into a gun, which was pointed directly at Reed. "And I'm an Avenger now." Noh-Varr fired.

* * *

Wolverine winced as he forcefully grabbed hold of his son Daken's arm and pulled the boy's claws out of their resting place deep in his own shoulder. Blood poured from the wound, but Wolverine ignored it; he had had much worse before, and his healing factor would begin taking care of it in no time. He grunted as he pushed Daken off of himself and took a firmer stance on the ground.

"It's time for Daddy to teach you a few manners," Wolverine muttered as he bared his adamantium claws, and brought them forward.

"I always have been rebellious," Daken replied sarcastically. Unbreakable metal clashed against hardened bone as the two mutants struggled against each other once again, neither one willing to relent or to show any sign of restraint.

"You'd be better off givin' up now," Wolverine said. "I've been doin' this a whole lot longer than you, and I've been hurt a lot worse. You can't bring anything against me that I haven't beaten before."

"Can't blame a guy for trying," Daken replied with a mischievous grin.

* * *

In the guise of his new identity as Ronin, Clint Barton used his twin katana to deflect an arrow from the man who wore his old costume.

"Gonna have to do better than that, Deadeye," he called to his opponent. "I knew the original Hawkeye pretty well, and trust me, you're not him." Clint didn't want to reveal that he himself had once been Hawkeye, but didn't mind throwing a few taunts at his enemy, which was a customary thing to do in these sorts of battles.

"You're right," said the man dressed as Hawkeye, who was really the criminal known as Bullseye. "I'm not Hawkeye. Hawkeye, as good as he was, missed from time to time." He strung another arrow onto his bow. "But not me. I never miss." Bullseye fired, and Ronin raised his swords for protection, the skills and accuracy he had used in his years of archery serving him just as well with swords instead. However, the arrow did something he didn't expect, and Ronin mentally chided himself for not being wary of trick arrows, which he himself had so often used as well. Instead of flying straight on its usual course, the arrow split off into two equally sharp and dangerous projectiles midway through the air, only one of which came into Ronin's range. He knocked the one half aside with his sword, but desperately realized that he'd be unable to reach the other one in time, and hoped it wouldn't hit one of his teammates who was engaged in another battle and thus had their back turned to him.

From out of the corner of his eye, Ronin saw the arrow deflected by another sizeable blade. He turned to look and, to his relief, saw Mockingbird, his wife, standing with her weapon poised expertly.

"Need a hand?" Mockingbird asked.

"I had it under control," Ronin protested.

"Because you were doing such a good job with both halves of that splitting arrow," she teased him.

"I am glad you're here, though," he said sincerely.

"So am I," she answered. Looking towards the false Hawkeye, she asked, "Shall we?"

"Sure thing," said Ronin. Together, the two of them raised their weapons and began to charge at Bullseye, who was notching another arrow already.

* * *

Carol Danvers, also known as Ms. Marvel, soared through the air, growing increasingly frustrated with her opponent. Who would've known that this fake Ms. Marvel would have all of her own powers plus the ability to turn intangible at will? How was she supposed to be beaten if energy bursts just phased right through her harmlessly?

"You know," said Carol, trying to hide her discouragement. "If you're going to rip off the real Avengers, you should do your homework first. That outfit is Captain Marvel. I, the real Ms. Marvel, have never worn anything like that."

Moonstone, dressed in a red and blue outfit with a golden emblem at its center, hovered in the air and snickered. "Hey, styles change," she retorted. "But I guess you wouldn't know much about that. I mean, how long have you been wearing those stupid black tights?"

Unable to think of a proper comeback, and focusing on the more important issue, Ms. Marvel once again sent forth the bursts of energy from her hands, aimed at her opponent. However, not entirely unexpectedly, Moonstone just phased in and out of tangibility, still ending up unharmed. She laughed. "Times change, and so do the Avengers." She stretched out her arms, pointed them at Ms. Marvel, and released a steady barrage of laser rays that were indeed a successful hit. And they hit hard.

Ms. Marvel staggered backward in the air, wondering how or even if she could possibly win.

* * *

"Sweet Christmas!"

Luke Cage felt the mighty battle axe of Ares slam into his chest. It didn't feel good. His superhumanly strong skin kept the blade from cutting him, but it didn't stop the pain. Cage tried to ignore the agony. He prepared for the mightiest punch he could muster and threw his fist into Ares' face, but it only fazed the war god lightly, if at all. Ares was stronger than Cage, and they both knew it.

"If you are wise, mortal, you will give up now," Ares taunted cruelly. "Before I rip your body apart and make a helmet out of your skull."

His body ached, but Cage didn't give up easily, and he wasn't about to do so now. "Well," he said, struggling to stand. "I must not be very wise, then." With a determined shout, Cage rushed at Ares, planning to slam the full weight of his body into his foe. Instead, he was easily blocked from Ares' body by the business end of the battle axe, which caused him to stumble backward onto the ground.

"No, apparently not," Ares said, walking slowly toward his fallen foe.

* * *

Though Doctor Strange was suffering slight pain from the Hood's minor electrical attacks, he had already cast a healing spell and was far from defeated. Though the Hood sometimes appeared mystical, another quick spell of discernment had revealed to Strange that his opponent possessed no magical powers of his own, just those that he had borrowed from other mystical beings. The all-seeing Eye of Agamotto allowed Strange to easily perceive his foe's location, despite the Hood's cloak of invisibility. Using his powers to hover above the ground, Strange found the Hood and prepared his next attack.

Softly speaking a few incantations, Strange invoked the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak, a spell that rarely failed to trap his opponent. True to form, the bands produced a mystical energy that swirled all around the Hood, imprisoning him in a circle that Strange doubted he would have the power to break. The Hood clearly struggled within his mystical cage, but to no avail.

Doctor Strange wasted no time. Having easily disposed of the Hood, he moved across the battlefield to join others who had need of even greater mystical power.

* * *

Bucky was angry.

It was bad enough that Steve Rogers, the original Captain America, was dead. The tragedy had rocked the entire superhero community—the entire country, even—and Bucky, his former partner, had probably been hit harder than anyone else, with a few possible exceptions, at the news. He had agreed to take on the mantle of Captain America, using Steve's shield and donning a costume similar to his predecessor's, not because he thought himself worthy of the title, but because the people needed a Captain America, and because someone had to make sure he lived on.

Bucky was quite convinced that that someone was definitely not Norman Osborn, formerly the Green Goblin, who had taken so many innocent lives in the past and had a history of mental instability. But there stood Osborn in his shining mechanical armor of red, white, and blue, calling himself the Iron Patriot, trying to add a sense of familiarity and security to his counterfeit Avengers by mimicking two of the team's most prominent veterans. Bucky didn't like it one bit.

"Okay, Osborn," he said, marching determinedly toward where the so-called Iron Patriot stood at the far edge of the battle. "I came to this fight as a favor to Spidey, but I've got no problems with taking you down all on my own, just because I want to."

"Well, if it isn't Captain America Jr.," Osborn mocked upon seeing Bucky's approach. "I believe you'll find that the Avengers are no longer in need of your services." Stretching out the palm of his heavily loaded armor, Osborn shot a laser blast at Bucky, momentarily halting the hero's progress.

Not to be deterred, Bucky pressed on. "You're not an Avenger," he spat at his enemy. "And you'll never know what it means to be one." Unlike his predecessor, Bucky didn't have the enhanced strength that had been granted to Steve by the super soldier serum, and so he hardly expected his fists or other such combat efforts to pierce through Osborn's high-tech armor. Lifting the iconic shield that had belonged to Steve, he swung it forward. The disc crashed into Osborn's armor with a clanking sound.

Osborn began to sprawl backward from the impact of the shield, but he didn't. Instead, he activated the armor's rocket thrusters, taking to the air and hovering a few feet above ground. The shield lay motionless on the ground. Bucky scrambled to reclaim it, but Osborn, with armor and rocket thrusters that were faster than a human, came down to the ground again and planted his foot firmly on top of the shield, keeping it out of Bucky's grasp. The Iron Patriot stood face to face with the current Captain America, who was down his usual shield.

Frantic for some sort of advantage and knowing that his strength alone wouldn't do the trick, Bucky reached for the pistol in his holster and pointed it at Osborn. It wasn't much, but it was something.

"Oh, please," Norman scoffed. "You're really going to have to step up your game if you want to compare to the _real_ Captain America." With his mechanical glove, Osborn activated the armor's magnetic repulsor rays, forcing the metal pistol out of Bucky's fist, through the air, and into Osborn's grasp, where the might of the armor easily crushed the pistol as if it were a piece of paper.

Bucky was scared.

"A word of advice," said Osborn, his voice amplified by the mechanical suit. He pressed a button on the armor, and a pair of miniature missiles popped up from his shoulders, ready to aim and fire. "Don't mess with America." The missiles fired. Bucky tried to dodge, but at such close range and with no real superpowers to combat the armor, there wasn't much he could do. The missiles hit him hard, created a small explosion of fire and smoke, and left him lying on the ground, unconscious.

"That was too easy," Norman said to himself, smiling behind his iron mask. "But not very fulfilling. You, Captain America, are not the one I came here to fight." Across the field of battle, he glimpsed the familiar figure of his longtime foe, the one and only Spider-Man.

* * *

"You know, I gotta hand it to you, Mac," Peter said, struggling to hold his own in the fistfight with Venom, but trying not to show it. "You've really trimmed down since the last time I saw you. In fact, it kind of reminds me of myself back in the day."

"I am _nothing_ like you!" Venom retorted, slamming his symbiotically enhanced fist into Peter's masked face. Peter tried to roll with the blow, but it hurt. A lot. "I am stronger and more powerful than you can imagine!"

"I don't know," said Peter, desperately throwing a few punches back at Venom. "I can imagine a whole lot." Unfortunately, it was true that the symbiote made Venom stronger than Spider-Man, but Spider-Man had beaten him before, either by outwitting Venom or exploiting one of his few weaknesses. "But seriously, have you been working out? You've really gotten into shape. I guess it does help to eat your vegetables, huh?"

"Shut up!" Venom screamed, swinging his arm at Spider-Man and causing the webslinger to fall to the ground several yards away.

Peter groaned as he gradually and painfully stood back up. The symbiote did have a few weaknesses, most notably its vulnerability to sonics and intense, high-pitched noises. Peter wished he had a utility belt where he could keep a dog whistle or something of that sort for every time he encountered Venom, but he didn't have anything he could use right now.

_Better think fast, Pete_, Peter thought to himself, seeing Venom rushing at him again.

Occasionally he had also weakened the symbiote with fire, but—

_Fire! Of course!_Peter leapt gracefully away from where he had been—not only to avoid Venom's rampage, but to position himself conveniently right under the skies above, where the Human Torch was battling the Sentry.

"Hey, Torch!" Peter called up as loudly as he could. "A little help down here?"

Having just gained a momentary advantage by giving the Sentry a concentrated burst of flame, Johnny Storm, the Human Torch, looked down to see his friend Spider-Man narrowly avoiding being pummeled by Venom. "Sure thing, Spidey," he said. The Torch flew down low until he was close enough to Venom to do some damage but still far enough away to be safe. Then, just as Venom was about to go after Spider-Man again, Johnny reached out his arms and emitted a steady blast of fire, scorching the symbiote and generating cries of agony from Venom. When he was finished, Mac Gargan was writhing in pain on the ground below, and the symbiote that covered him looked fried and beaten.

"Thanks for the save," Peter said to Johnny.

"No problem," answered the Torch.

Peter looked around, relieved to no longer have to deal with Venom, since his fight hadn't been with Venom in the first place. As impossible as it seemed, Peter still wanted to be able to fight Mephisto, his ultimate enemy in this quarrel. He looked around the battlefield to see if he could catch a glimpse of the demon and see how the magic users were faring against him.

Instead, he saw the Iron Patriot hovering above the ground right in front of him.

"Spider-Man," said Norman Osborn's familiar voice through the speakers in the armor. "You are in violation of the Superhuman Registration Act. Surrender peacefully or suffer the consequences."

_Oh, crap_, Peter thought. His trusty spider-sense tingling like mad, Peter immediately went on the defensive. He pointed his wrist-mounted web-shooter at the eyes of his enemy's iron helmet and fired.

With little apparent effort, the armor's mechanical eyeholes produced two thin laser beams, slicing clear through the webbing and allowing Norman to see again. Then Norman focused the deadly lasers on Spider-Man.

* * *

"Thanks for the save!" Spider-Man had said.

"No problem," answered the Torch. He was glad to be able to help his longtime friend Spider-Man, but he didn't want to ignore his own opponent for too long. He rose higher into the air again and spun around, but he didn't see the Sentry.

"You shouldn't have let your guard down," said a voice from behind him. It was the Sentry. Johnny started to turn around, but he was unprepared, and it was too late. The Sentry stretched out his hands and unleashed the power of one million exploding suns onto his unsuspecting foe. Under the impact of such awesome power, Johnny's flame was extinguished, and he struggled to remain in flight, but to no avail. Helplessly, his plain blue Fantastic Four uniform easily visible without his usual cover of flame, Johnny's unconscious body began to plummet to the ground several yards below.

"Johnny!" cried his sister Sue, the Invisible Woman. "Cover for me," she said to Spider-Woman, temporarily distracted from their battle against Emma Frost.

"I'll see what I can do," Spider-Woman replied.

Acting out of instinct, Sue created a force field in midair, catching Johnny and lowering him harmlessly to the ground, where she hoped he would be safe until he woke up or the battle ended.

Watching the Torch's rescue from above, the Sentry flew down and positioned himself in front of Sue. "You are an ally of the Human Torch, yes?"

"Yes," Sue answered resolutely.

"Then you are also my enemy," the Sentry stated coldly. Lifting his hands, he gestured toward Sue and prepared to release as much unstoppable solar energy as he had just used on Johnny.

"Bad idea," Sue replied. Without missing a beat, she concentrated and encased the Sentry in a close-quartered force field bubble. An indescribable sight transpired within the bubble as the Sentry's energy discharge created explosion after fiery explosion, but none of them were able to pierce the force bubble that Sue was so desperately maintaining. Instead, all the Sentry's destrucitve energy was just bouncing back and forth inside the force bubble, therefore only hurting the person inside the force bubble—the Sentry himself.

When the explosions seemed to have dissipated, Sue dissolved her force bubble. Smoke began to rise and small pockets of flame fell to the ground, along with the limp, unconscious body of the Sentry, knocked out by his own attack.

"Well, that takes care of that," Sue said to herself. "Now to—"

She stopped and screamed.

Inside her mind, Sue felt a presence that couldn't be mistaken for anyone other than the telepathic Emma Frost. A sharp, intense pain resonated unrelentingly throughout Sue's mind. She put her hands to her head, but to no avail. The presence wouldn't go away.

"The bad idea was for you to take your concentration away from the real threat—me," Emma stated arrogantly, focusing her mental energy against Sue. "Why don't you take a little nap?" At Emma's mental command, Sue closed her eyes and her body, too, fell to the ground, mentally sedated into a trance. Smiling, Emma looked to Spider-Woman. "One down, one to go," she said.

Spider-Woman looked back with determination on her face. "Let's finish this."

* * *

Given the flexible qualities of his elastic body, it was not very hard for Mister Fantastic to dodge the blast from Noh-Varr's gun, twisting his torso into a thin, hard-to-hit cord as easily as a normal man would swing his arm back and forth.

"Noh-Varr, you've got to listen!" Reed shouted to his opponent. "Norman Osborn is evil, but you don't have to be a villain!"

"I don't believe you," the Kree warrior replied sternly. "I'm a soldier, a warrior bound by honor, and Osborn is my commander now." He fired again, and Reed dodged again, but not quite so easily this time. Noh-Varr was good, and Reed wasn't going to get anywhere by just dodging lasers and trying to reason with him.

"Oh, no you don't," Reed said, beginning to act. Still keeping a close watch on the crucial device he had brought, Reed pulled one of his hands away and began to elongate his arm, stretching it out like rubber. Moving quickly, he wrapped his enlargened fingers fully around the gun in Noh-Varr's hand, but he didn't stop there. He continued to stretch out his arm and wrap it around Noh-Varr's gun hand over and over, creating several layers of insulation. Seeing his foe's plan, Noh-Varr fired the gun. The blast stung and Reed wanted to let go, but the layers of his skin that surrounded the gun protected him from the worst of it, and he held on tight.

Unable to use his gun or to free himself from Reed, Noh-Varr was trapped.

But Reed wasn't quite finished yet. He began to pour all the extra mass he could spare into his other hand, creating a massive, gigantic, super-dense fist. Once he gave Noh-Varr a few firm bops on the head with said fist, the Kree warrior was unconscious and down for the count. Relieved to have defeated his foe, Reed shrunk his fist back down to normal and unwrapped his arm from around the gun.

His body back to the proportions of a normal human's, Reed looked around. The battle was still raging on, but from what he could tell, each villain was already being dealt with by one of his heroic allies, and that meant Reed could do what he needed to. Trying to appear unnoticed, he picked up the device he had brought and carried it out of the way of the fray, behind a nearby building, where he should be able to work in peace until he could decide the battle.

Reed stretched his neck out from his hiding place and observed, his scientific curiosity racing like mad. The small group of magic users were trading energy blasts back and forth, often adding another sort of attack or defense spell into the mix against their opponents. Reed's extremely powerful mind ran several quick calculations, and he entered some data into his machine, trying to get the exact specifications and signatures of the energy that he saw. If all went well, it should only be a matter of time.

* * *

Ben Grimm pounded his fists together, having subdued Namor the Sub-Mariner. Namor was strong, with his Atlantean blood and mutant gene, but he was only the size of a regular human, and he wasn't made of rock. In short, Ben was just as strong, if not stronger than Namor, and he was a better fighter, too. Right now Namor was unconscious on the ground, and he wouldn't be feeling very good when he eventually woke up.

"Okay," Ben shouted, eager for more villains to pummel. "Who else is up for a good, solid clobberin'?"

As if in reply, something hit Ben in the shoulder. It barely scratched him, of course, and hardly seemed like a punch or kick from a villain trying to hurt him, even an extremely pathetic villain. Ben looked down to the ground and saw a long, wooden arrow, its point cracked from its impact with Ben's shoulder. Ben casually stepped on the offending object, crushing it like a twig beneath his feet, and then turned to look at where it had come from. Just a few yards away, the skilful Ronin was trading blows and dodging arrows with the fake Hawkeye of the Dark Avengers. Presumably, the arrow that had just hit Ben had been dodged by Ronin and thus was free to hit someone else instead.

Smiling, Ben ran over to Hawkeye, who looked quite unnerved at the rocky behemoth's approach. "You dropped somethin' back there," Ben said, gesturing backward. Then, without a second thought, he forcefully pulled the bow from out of Hawkeye's hands and ripped it in half, throwing the two runied pieces off to the side. Ben then made similar work of the quiver full of arrows on Hawkeye's back. The purple-clad impostor stood staring intently at Ben, cowering in fear.

"You know, I was kinda hopin' for someone else ta clobber," Ben said. "But I'm gonna give you a warning. If I wuz you, I'd run away real fast, right now."

Hawkeye, stripped of his weapons and his dignity, turned and ran until he was well out of Ben's sight.

Ben turned to face his sometime ally, Ronin. "How's the lady?" he asked, referring to Mockingbird.

"She got hit by a smoke arrow," Ronin explained. "She's out, but she'll be okay."

"Good to know," said Ben. "Mebbe we should—"

"Hey, ugly!" called a female voice from behind him.

Ben sighed. "Well, there ain't too many folks here who that could be referrin' to." He turned around to see Ms. Marvel—also the impostor from the Dark Avengers, rather than the real one—flying straight at him.

"I saw what you did to Hawkeye," she said. "And I don't like people who do that to my teammates."

Ben groaned. "Look, lady, I really don't wanna fight you," he said, having no particular quarrel with Moonstone and feeling reluctant to hit a girl. "Doncha have someone else to fight?"

"I already beat the so-called Ms. Marvel," she explained. "You're next."

"Well, okay, you asked for it," Ben said. "It's clobb—"

Ms. Marvel shot one of her concentrated energy blasts striaght into Ben's chest.

"Yeeeeeeeow!" the Thing cried in pain.

Ronin, not particularly wanting to hurt his old Thunderbolts ally Moonstone, and realizing that he wouldn't be much use against a flying foe from his flightless position on the ground, began to patrol the battlefield in search of others who could use his assistance. He saw the corner of magic users at the far edge of the field, and purposely steered clear of them, knowing that he would be useless and that magic could be very dangerous. He saw the two Wolverines slashing at each other still, both severely cut and bleeding, but both enduring due to their healing factors, and both appearing just about evenly matched. And he saw Ares, the god of war, throwing the unconscious body of Luke Cage, Ronin's fellow Avenger, across the field.

"Who would dare challenge the might of Ares?" the warrior shouted, more of a taunt or a boast than a sincere question. Enraged at Cage's downfall and looking for someone to fight, Ronin stealthily came up behind Ares and struck his twin katana at the war god's exposed back.

Unfortunately, they didn't make a dent.

Ares spun around. "You?" he thundered. "You would dare challenge my might?" Without waiting for an answer, he swung his mighty battle axe and hit Ronin in the chest. Hard. Throbbing and bleeding, Clint Barton fell to the ground, struggling to maintain consciousness.

_Maybe it wasn't such a great idea to challenge him_, he thought.

* * *

"I must say, Norman, I simply love the new costume," Peter said while simulataneously trying to dodge the Iron Patriot's laser shooters and clog them with his own webbing. "I mean, sure, it's a total rip-off of two of this country's greatest heroes and it's a complete disgrace to them when being worn by a no-good scumbag like yourself, but that silly old goblin Halloween costume you used to ride around in really had me worried for a while there." He shot another thick strand of web into what he thought was the shoulder-mounted missile launcher. Hopefully he wouldn't have to deal with those.

"You'll learn not to mock me, Spider-Man," Osborn said, swinging at the agile wall-crawler with his iron fist.

"Funny," Peter replied. "After all the times we've fought, I still haven't learned by now. Do you think you could go over it one more time? Fundamental Basics of How Not to Mock Norman the Scumbag Osborn 101?" Peter got up close to his opponent and punched him in the facial area as hard as he could. Though still quite sturdy, the armor gave more under pressure than did the living symbiote of Venom. "I hope I get a good grade."

Rage fueling up inside him, Norman held his tongue and lunged at Spider-Man once again. With the help of his spider-sense, Peter tried to dodge, but Norman's rocket thrusters and his ability to hover above the ground made him fast—too fast for Peter. Using the enhanced strength granted to him by the iron suit, Norman wrapped his arms around Spider-Man, rendering him immobile, and lifted him up into the air. Norman was holding him so tightly that Peter couldn't move, and from what he felt, his web-shooters might be crushed, too. If Norman were to drop him from this height, it would be very bad.

"Time to die, Spider-Man," said Norman Osborn.

* * *

Doctor Strange stood beside two beings with whom he had never expected to ally himself for any purpose. Yet here he was with Doctor Doom, the tyrannical, sorcerous monarch of Latveria, and Loki, Norse god (or goddess) of mischeif and evil, fighting together with them against an even greater evil, the demon known as Mephisto. After defeating the Hood, Strange had joined his fellow magic users and began to combine his knowledge and energy with their own, hoping and praying that the three of them, though each one would have little hope individually, would be able to defeat Mephisto together.

Strange had already employed the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak on Mephisto, but having mystical powers even greater than those of Cyttorak, Mephisto couldn't be contained for long. However, the trap did buy Strange and his allies the few needed moments for Loki to strengthen the mystical bond among all three of their energies, creating a stronger shield against whatever attacks Mephisto might throw at them. However, as they employed their various spells against Mephisto and tried to resist his attacks, one thing was becoming clear: even together, the three of them weren't as powerful as Mephisto. Unless something changed, it would only be a matter of time until they lost the battle.

Not one to give up easily, Strange tried to encourage his allies. "Muster up all the energy you can!" he shouted desperately. "Call upon whatever powers you know, and use whatever spells you can think of. We can't let Mephisto win!" Strange heard an unfamiliar buzzing noise coming from a short distance away, but he paid it little attention, assuming it was a byproduct of either some spell that Doom or Loki had cast or of someone's power in one of the many other battles raging in the vicinity. Focusing on the task at hand, he followed his own advice and focused his consciousness to reach for one of the deepest and most powerful spells he knew.

He felt nothing.

Strange was puzzled and instantly startled. It wasn't just that the spell he had been reaching for was unaccessible to him. Rather, it was as if, by some inexplicable phenomenon, all trace of magic and all the mental and spiritual connections to the mystical world that he was used to feeling could no longer be felt. He tried to cast a simple spell and couldn't. He couldn't sense the mystical energy of Doom or Loki, either. Was Mephisto so powerful as to be able to sever their connections to magic completely?

"What trickery is this, Mephisto?" Doom thundered angrily.

Loki chimed in as well. "What foul spell is this that it can even take away our very magic itself?" Apparently Strange was not the only one dealing with the sudden loss of power.

"I wish I knew," Mephisto retorted, sounding sincere. Strange looked up at Mehpsito. There was no ethereal energy emanating from his hands and there were no red clouds of magical mist surrounding him. He was just standing there helplessly like a normal physical being (although he did look out of place, still retaining his usual form as a crimson-skinned demon). Most convincingly, he wasn't employing some horrible attack spell to use against his enemies in their moment of weakness. Whatever was happening to the powers of Strange, Doom, and Loki was also happening to the powers of Mephisto. But no matter how hard he racked his brain, Strange couldn't begin to imagine what that something was.

Curious and cautious, he looked around him. Various superhuman allies and enemies were still trading punches all across the field, and several unconscious bodies littered the ground. But there was one man who fell into neither category, and that man was Reed Richards, who stood casually a few yards away from the magicians, holding an unidentifiable device that seemed to be emitting some sort of electrical energy, as well as the buzzing sound Strange had heard earlier.

"Richards?" Strange called. "Might I ask what you're doing?"

Reed looked up and glanced sheepishly at Strange, apparently not wanting whatever he was doing to be noticed just yet. "Um, I'll be right back," he said.

* * *

Without warning or explanation, Peter saw an oversized blue arm come up behind the Iron Patriot, and a current of visible electrical energy surged through his opponent's armor. Peter's spider-sense continued tingling wildly, the eyes in Norman's iron mask drained of the light that had powered them, and the rocket thrusters that had been propelling them through the air suddenly shut off. Whatever the source of the electricity Peter had just seen, it was apparently too much for the mechanical armor to handle without overloading. Normally Peter would be glad about Norman's armor being incapacitated, but right now he was falling rapidly with Norman, and had only seconds to react.

Thankfully, Peter had gotten very good at reacting in seconds over the years.

His mind and heart racing furiously, Peter wrenched his arm out from Norman's grasp, since the armor couldn't hold onto him much longer. His web-shooters had sustained some damage, but Norman hadn't fully crushed them. When they got close enough to the ground, Peter desperately shot a strand of his webbing at the base of a nearby building. It didn't come as quickly or stick as strongly as he would have liked, but it would do. Thanks to the connection of the webline, Peter fell against the side of the building, which wasn't a particularly nice landing, but wasn't as far of a fall as it would have been if he had landed on the ground. Once he reached the building, his spider-powers allowed him to cling safely to its surface where he could recover from pain away from immediate danger.

Norman Osborn, on the other hand, fell away from the building and to the hostile ground below, immobilized by his armor's loss of power. His landing produced a very unpleasant-sounding crash.

"Okay," Peter said aloud, feeling scared, relieved, and confused all at once. "What the heck just happened?"

To his right, Peter saw the pliable body of Mister Fantastic rising up to meet him on the side of the building and holding an unfamiliar mechanical device of some sort. "Spider-Man, this is your fight, not mine," he said. "So I thought you might want to see this."

"See _what?_" Peter asked incredulously.

"Come with me."

Not sure how else to respond, Peter jumped down from the building and followed his friend Mister Fantastic to another part of the battlefield where he saw Doctor Strange, Doctor Doom, Loki, and Mephisto all standing around and looking very confused. Peter tried to restrain his anger against Mephisto and listen calmly for the time being, because he knew that whenever Reed Richards, scientist extrarodinaire, was carrying out a plan of his, it was probably worth paying attention to.

"Some form of explanation would be in order, Richards," Doctor Doom demanded.

"I'm with Doom," Peter said to Reed. "What exactly is going on here, and why aren't we beating the heck out of Mehpsito right now? Come to think of it, why isn't he beating the heck out of us?"

"It's all very simple," Reed began. Peter knew, as a fellow scientist and from Reed's tone of voice, that it wouldn't all be very simple. Throughout Reed's entire speech, the device he carried kept buzzing along and generating electricity, containing a small ball of lighting within an insulated chamber on the side of the machine. Reed stood high enough off the ground that none of the others, Mephisto in particular, could reach or damage the machine he was holding. "As you should know, Victor, magic and science are not as different from one another as is widely assumed," he said. "I'm not nearly as knowledgeable of magic as any of you are, but if I'm not mistaken, magic is bound to a rational order and certain inherent laws, just as the natural sciences are. Another thing I've picked up on, especially from the combat that you four have engaged in and the mystical blasts you send back and forth is that magic is, at its core, an energy. And it is a well-known law of science that energy can neither be created nor destroyed, only changed into different forms."

He cleared his throat and then continued. "Victor, you should be able to see where this is going. After one of our more recent encounters, in which I took the liberty of...uh...investigating many of your belongings, I began to study the nature of magic a little bit alongside my usual studies of science. After much experimentation and calculation, I was able to decipher, analyze, and pick apart the unique signature of magical energy, and so I incorporated it into my previously built energy converter."

"You mean—" Dr. Doom began indignantly.

"Yes," Reed interrupted, eager to finish his speech. "This device is programmed to absorb all forms of magical energy in the vicinity and automatically convert it into the more scientific electrical energy." To Peter, he softly added, "Which, conveniently, can also be used as a weapon in battle."

"Wow, that's pretty impressive," Peter said sincerely. "So, as long as you've got that thing going, none of them can use magic?"

"Precisely," said Reed.

"I will not stand for this indignity, to be bested by one such as Richards!" Doom shouted.

"Silence, Doom!" Loki chided him. "Do you not see? The one called Reed Richards has saved us all!"

"Loki is right," Strange added. "Mephisto was winning. Our magical energy couldn't compare to his. We would've lost, but now that none of us can use magic..." He paused to let his point sink in. "He's on the same level as we are." At these words, Strange, Loki, Doom, Reed, and Peter all glanced over at Mephisto, who looked very uncomfortable and afraid.

Not wanting to succumb so easily to defeat, Mephisto changed fear into action. Realizing that he couldn't use any of his normal magical powers, the demon instead rushed at Mister Fantastic and prepared to attack, seeking to destroy the machine that was robbing him of his power.

"Oh, no you don't," Peter shouted, intercepting the attack. With the proportionate agility of a spider, he jumped up from the ground and landed right in front of Mephisto, wasting no time in slamming his fist into the demon's face. Mephisto staggered backward, but Peter was far from finished. This was the moment he had dared to long for throughout the entire battle—actually, throughout the entire ordeal of realizing what had happened to the timeline and to his marriage. Peter knocked Mephisto down onto the ground and bent down to meet him there, then proceeded to pummel him with his fists repeatedly. No witty banter escaped Peter's mouth this time, and neither did much speech at all, aside from an occasional comment that emphasized Peter's anger at Mephisto for what he had done. To Peter's delight, he was finding that Mephisto was practically helpless without his supernatural powers. He couldn't cast a spell, he couldn't teleport away, and he wasn't even superhumanly strong like Peter was. Despite his enemy's clearly demonic appearance, fighting the magicless Mephisto felt to Peter much like it felt when he apprehended a common criminal with no superpowers, except that this time, Peter wasn't holding back.

"Please..." Mephisto uttered, clearly in pain and showing no hope of defending himself as long as Mister Fantastic's energy converter was running. "Have mercy..."

"Mercy?" Peter exclaimed audaciously. "You want mercy? Did you show me mercy when you demanded an outrageous price in exchange for healing my aunt? Did you show mercy when you came here and attacked me with an army of supervillains? Did you?"

"No..." Mephisto admitted weakly, struggling to speak with Peter pinning him down on the ground. "Please...what do you want? I'll give you anything, but spare my life..."

"I want things back the way they're supposed to be!" Peter exclaimed, his heart racing with anger at Mephisto and with excitement at beating him. "I want my marriage to have happened exactly the way it did before you changed the timeline."

"You'll get it," Mephisto promised.

"But there's more," Peter said. "This can't happen again. I can't have something like this happen again. It all started with Aunt May being shot because the public knew my secret identity. You've got to put my marriage back just the way it was, but Aunt May also has to be completely healthy, and no one must remember my identity."

"You ask a high price," Mephisto said.

"Higher than your life?" Peter asked.

Mephisto appeared to consider this for only a moment. Then he smiled mischievously, as if he knew something that Peter didn't or still somehow had some ace in the hole. But his words suggested nothing of the sort. "Very well," the demon conceded. "If you spare my life, then I'll do all you just asked. But..."

"But what?" Peter asked.

Mephisto pointed up at Mister Fantastic. "...I am powerless as long as that accursed machine operates. Unless you turn it off, I can do nothing for you."

"Oh, yeah," Peter said, not having considered that beforehand. He almost told Reed to turn off the machine, but then had another thought. If Mephisto got his magical powers back, what would stop him from going back on his deal and hurting Peter instead?

As if anticipating what he was thinking, Mephisto spoke again. "We've made a deal now. I'm honor bound to fulfill it without trickery or deceit."

Not wanting to trust a demon's words about honor and deceit, Peter looked back to Reed, as if to ask for help or guidance.

"I still have the machine," Reed noted. "If he tries anything, I'll turn it back on immediately."

"Okay," Peter said hesitantly, hoping that he wasn't making a huge mistake. "Turn it off, Reed. Give him his power back."

Reed obeyed. The buzzing stopped, and Mephisto's eyes glowed a brighter red. Immediately, the bruises Peter had given him healed. But, true to his word, Mephisto didn't escape or attack. All around them, the other combatants who had lasted this long in the battle—the Thing, Ronin, Spider-Woman, Wolverine, Daken, Emma Frost, Ares, and Moonstone—had no idea that the outcome of the battle they were fighting had just been decided. Mephisto spoke.

"It'll be just like you demanded," the demon said. "All the years of your marriage will be like they originally were. Your aunt will be alive and in perfect health. And..." Here he smiled mysteriously once again. "..._no one_ will remember the identity of Spider-Man. Is this what you want?"

"Yes," Peter said.

"Are you ready?" Mephisto asked.

"Yes!" Peter exclaimed. He hadn't meant to be shout, but this was the culmination of all he had been fighting for. He was about to get back the happy life that he never remembered knowing, but soon would. He couldn't help but be a bit enthusiastic about it. "I'm ready! Do it now!"

"Very well," said Mephisto. At his mental command, red smoke began to swirl all around them, thin and slow at first, but becoming increasingly more intense. Peter felt lightheaded. He looked back to see what his teammates were doing, but they weren't there. In fact, nothing was. Peter was in the dark, cold void between dimensions, much like the place he had seen through Reed's machine at the Baxter Building when he had learned about the damaged timeline in the first place. He looked and saw Mephisto, but then Mephisto was gone too. Peter felt all alone in an indescribably empty place.

And then, suddenly, he felt nothing at all.

* * *

Peter looked around, feeling slightly disoriented. He was standing in the living room of his old apartment. He was wearing a T-shirt, jeans, and socks. Moonlight shone through the window, and a familiar, beautiful redhead with a wedding ring on her finger sat on the couch a few feet away.

"Hey there, tiger," she said enticingly.

Peter perked up immediately. "Mary Jane!" he exclaimed vibrantly. He wasted no time. Peter ran to the couch, put his arms very tightly around his wife, sat down on the couch with a deliberate closeness to her, and began smothering her with kisses as passionately as he could manage.

"Well, it looks like _someone's _an eager beaver!" Mary Jane commented playfully between returning her husband's kisses.

"Sorry, MJ," Peter said.

"No, don't be sorry," she responded. "I'm certainly not complaining. Just a little bit surprised. Why so eager all of a sudden?"

"Other than the fact that I'm married to the most beautiful woman alive?" Peter asked. "I don't know. For some reason, I just feel like I haven't seen you in a long, long time—" He trailed off and looked out into the distance, as if struggling to remember something.

"What is it?" Mary Jane asked curiously. "Is something wrong?"

Peter hesitated before speaking, as if unsure of himself. "Mary Jane, this is going to sound crazy," he said. "But do you remember anything about...us being separated for a while? I don't mean just separated like people normally are, when they're married and then away from each other. I mean—"

"You mean like we were never married at all," Mary Jane finished for him.

"Yes!" said Peter. "It's crazy, I know, and my memory is still hazy, but...it happened."

"I remember it," Mary Jane said, exchanging her playfulness for a more serious demeanor. "But...why...how...?"

"I'm not sure," Peter answered. "I think there was magic involved. A being named Mephisto, I think, and a lot of magic."

"Normally that would sound crazy to me," Mary Jane conceded, sounding increasingly concerned. "Except that I remember it all, too."

"The fact that we both remember means it's got to be real," Peter stated, perplexed. "I guess with all the crazy stuff I've seen in the world, it's not completely out of possibility...I mean, all kinds of superheroes and cosmic demigods duke it out in the middle of New York every other week. Doctor Strange is a magician and a superhero. And, from what I can remember of what happened, there were a lot of superheroes involved with whatever this was, too."

"You're right," said Mary Jane. "I wish I could remember more, but I know that there were superheroes. I think whatever happened somehow revolved around Spider-Man."

"So do I," said Peter carefully, still struggling to remember, as if there was something else about Spider-Man that he should be able to recall. "It was definitely about Spider-Man. I mean, after all my years of following him around with a camera, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that we got mixed up in whatever he was doing, but..."

"It's still a lot to take in," Mary Jane finished. "I think...if I'm remembering right...Mephisto bargained with us to take away our marriage...and Spider-Man was somehow involved..."

"And then Spider-Man defeated Mephisto and helped us get it back," Peter recalled.

"But what would a demon like Mephisto want with us?" Mary Jane asked, fear and desperation evident in her voice.

"I don't know," Peter admitted, just as concerned and confused as his wife was. "I don't remember exactly what happened either." Seeing that his wife was in a significant state of distress, Peter tried to comfort her. He readjusted his arm around her shoulder and continued speaking. "But I know the one thing that matters," he said. "I know that, even though our marriage was somehow taken away, we somehow have it back now." He kissed Mary Jane gently on the cheek. "As long as I'm together with you, everything else isn't quite as important."

"Yes...you're right," Mary Jane said, looking him in the eyes. "I'm so glad to be back with you again." She shifted her position on the couch and laid her head delicately on Peter's chest. For several moments they sat cuddled together, neither one speaking a word, both simply enjoying each other's presence. Then, after a while, grogginess showing itself in her tone, Mary Jane asked, "Do you think we're still in danger? From Mephisto or Spider-Man or anyone, I mean?"

"I can't say for sure," Peter admitted. "But somehow, I don't think so. I seem to remember Spider-Man making a deal with Mephisto to give us back our marriage. If he keeps it, we should be safe."

"That's good," Mary Jane muttered noncomitally. Peter looked down. His wife's eyes were closed, and she was only half listening to him. Come to think of it, he was pretty tired too.

"Tell you what," he said.

"What?" Mary Jane asked.

"It's getting late, and I feel like I haven't gotten to sleep with my wife in a long time. In the morning we'll be more well-rested and more awake, so maybe we'll remember more then. How about we head off to bed for now?"

"Mmmkay," Mary Jane replied sleepily. Slowly, she stood up, and Peter did the same. Together they walked towards their bedroom, still greatly confused, but satisfied to leave things as they stood for the time being.

Trying to put the best resolution he could on their confusion, Peter made one final comment. "Whoever Spider-Man is and wherever he is right now, he can worry about himself," he said, having no idea that at that exact moment he was fulfilling one of the conditions he had errantly demanded of Mephisto: that _no one_ remember the identity of Spider-Man, not even Spider-Man himself.

**Due to popular demand, _Good Old Day_ will continue with a fifth chapter, in which this new plot twist will be resolved. To be concluded!**

_**References:**_

_When writing the battles between different characters, I often referred to the Powergrids in the Character Bios on to see who would be most likely to beat the other person in a fight._

_There are some characters in this chapter, especially the newer ones such as Noh-Varr, Daken, the Sentry and the Hood, who I was not very familiar with, but I included them because they're in the Dark Avengers or the Cabal or whatever group I needed to use in this chapter. Since I didn't know much about them, I tried to gather what I could of their powers, personalities, etc. from online sources such as and Wikipedia. Please forgive me if I have portrayed them inaccurately compared to what they're like in the comics._

_I'm not sure in which issue Noh-Varr was visited at the Cube by Mr. Fantastic and the Illuminati, because I learned about it from .org/wiki/Noh-Varr#New_Avengers:_Illuminati._

_The Beyonder brought several heroes and villains together on Battleworld in _Secret Wars _#s 1-12._

_The Civil War of the superhero community took place in _Civil War_ #s 1-7._

_The invasion of the Skrulls took place in _Secret Invasion _#s 1-8._

_Several heroes, including the Fantastic Four, came to help the mentally recovering Sentry in _New Avengers _#7-10._

_In _Dark Avengers _#1, Norman Osborn gave Venom some sort of formula that transformed him from the large, hulking monstrosity he was into a smaller, trimmer form reminiscent of Spider-Man's days with the alien symbiote._

_In _Fantastic Four _#s 497-500, Dr. Doom attacked the Fantastic Four with his knowledge of sorcery and magic. Doom was defeated and shortly after, in #s 503-508, the Fantastic Four went to Latveria to raid Doom's castle and confiscate much of his technology and other important belongings, which could have easily included books of magic. _

_Spider-Man's response to Venom of "I can imagine a whole lot" is a quote from Han Solo in _Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. _I'm a Star Wars nerd as well as a Spider-Man nerd, so I had to include a reference in here somewhere!_

_Editorial:_

_Now that I've brought Peter and Mary Jane back together, I'd like to say a few words about my opinion on the huge controversy over the "One More Day" and "Brand New Day" storylines. Even though I'm writing this story as a way to undo the events of "One More Day", I don't think those events and the subsequent "Brand New Day" storyline are as bad as lots of readers say they are. Yes, I like the character of Mary Jane, and I very much like seeing Peter's relationship with her. But I've read a lot of Spider-Man comics over the years, and Peter Parker is still my favorite character, even when he's not married. I like Peter being married, but "Brand New Day" brings back the classic, familiar feel of the original Spider-Man comics, and I like that, too. I can appreciate what Stan Lee said in the afterword of the _One More Day_ collected edition about the importance of changing things up in the comics from time to time. However, I also have heard rumors that the reason Marvel chose to erase Peter's marriage was only to make him more relatable to fans who have come in from the Spider-Man movies and the _Ultimate Spider-Man _series. I can't verify whether these rumors are true or not. If they are, then I'm disappointed with Marvel's choice to appeal to a wider fanbase at the cost of compromising their character, but in that case it would be their motives I'm disappointed with, not the "One More Day" storyline in and of itself. As a long time reader and writer, my mind is always exploring different possibilities of each story and character, and so I eventually began to wonder how Marvel would possibly undo "One More Day" if they ever decided to. This story was birthed primarily from that curiosity, not from the opinion that Peter and Mary Jane necessarily must get back together, but just from wondering how they possibly could. I like Spider-Man when he's married, I like Spider-Man when he's single, and as long as he retains the friendly personality, witty sense of humor, familiar nerdishness and altrustic motives that he's had since his debut in 1962, I think I'll still like Spider-Man._


	5. The Final Chapter!

_(Author's note: thanks to all of you who have been reading so far. Here is the fifth and final chapter that I promised. Remember that, as of the end of last chapter, Peter and Mary Jane both have all of their memories except for those that pertain to the fact that Peter is Spider-Man. That is why, throughout this chapter, Peter is continuously unaware of or unable to remember things that were caused by or pertain directly to that fact.)_

**Chapter Five**

A week or two after he had been reunited with his wife and had first noticed the strange, inexplicable gaps in his memory, Peter Parker sat at the kitchen table of the apartment he shared with Mary Jane, eating a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs. He had just gotten up a little while ago and was only wearing a pair of shorts with no shirt. Mary Jane was still asleep, but he had made enough breakfast for her as well.

To say the least, the past few weeks had been enjoyable, if not quite unusual, for him and Mary Jane. Peter was certainly thankful and glad to have such a wonderful, loving wife, but he was still plagued and perplexed by the mystery of what had happened with the space-time continuum and the time in which he and Mary Jane apparently hadn't been married. He had a whole slew of assorted memories from the past several months. Almost all of his memories had gaps in them, and some of them now seemed like they hadn't actually happened—which, if the space-time continuum had indeed been altered, he supposed it was true that they technically hadn't happened after all. And he knew that the whole thing somehow centered around Spider-Man, a few other superheroes, and a villainous demon named Mephisto, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't piece much together beyond that. Maybe Peter would never know what had happened, and maybe it didn't matter, since he was back with Mary Jane and they were happy together again, but he still couldn't help but wonder.

Peter was thirsty, and his cup was empty. Resolving to try to put the mystery of his jumbled memories out of mind for now, he stood up and walked to the fridge in search of more orange juice. Suddenly, before he even had a chance to open the fridge, Peter felt a strange sensation, almost like some sort of warning, as if something was coming right towards him at that very moment. Acting on instinct, he made a small jump to the other side of the kitchen and spun around to see what danger the sensation had come from.

Mary Jane, still in her bedtime clothes and arms outstretched as if to give him a hug, stood right behind where Peter had been just a moment ago.

"Oh, Mary Jane!" Peter exclaimed. "It's just you."

"Whoa, there, Tiger," she said, playful though surprised. "Where'd you learn to jump like that?"

"I...I don't know," Peter answered honestly. "I had the weirdest feeling, as if I was in some sort of danger and I was able to know it beforehand, and then...I just jumped out of the way, I guess."

"If you ask me, a wife trying to give her husband a surprise morning hug from behind doesn't exactly sound very dangerous," Mary Jane commented.

"No, you're right, it doesn't," Peter said. "I don't know what happened. But what was that about a morning hug?" He walked over to her eagerly and wasted no time in wrapping his arms tightly around her attractive figure.

"One giant-sized morning hug, coming right up," Mary Jane said.

"Now, that's what I like to hear," said Peter. He relished the feeling of holding her in his arms and being simultaneously held in her arms. Even after years of marriage, this never got old for him. He loved his wife. He loved seeing her and being with her and feeling her enticing touch. It was possibly the happiest feeling he had ever known. Still holding her close, Peter looked at his wife's lovely face and the thick red hair that flowed down from it. "Hey, MJ," he said.

"Yes, Peter?" she asked.

"Have I ever told you that you're beautiful?"

"Yes, Peter."

"Can I tell you again?"

She smiled. "Sure, go ahead."

"You're beautiful," Peter said sincerely, gently kissing her lips. "You're the most beautiful woman in the whole wide world."

"Why, Peter Parker," Mary Jane said, blushing slightly. "You're a shameless flatterer, do you know that?"

"It's only flattery if it's not true," Peter retorted quickly. "But it really is true that you're the most beautiful woman in the whole wide world—and not just the regular ol' world, either, but the _whole wide_ world, which is a lot bigger, and contains many more women who are still not as beautiful as you."

Mary Jane giggled. "Well, if you say so," she conceded. "But you're not too shabby yourself, you know." She moved her finger lovingly across the well-defined lines of her husband's chest. "Just look at those big muscles, after all."

"Yeah," said Peter, looking down at his muscular frame. "And to think they used to call me 'Puny Parker' in high school."

"Well, I'm certainly glad you're not so puny anymore," said Mary Jane. "How did you get so strong, anyway?"

"Well, towards the end of high school, I—" Peter stopped. He had always remembered that there was some event that had caused him to transform from a slim weakling into a stronger, more muscular man—but what was it? He didn't remember ever working out very much. Why couldn't he remember? "I don't remember," Peter said, confused. "I guess it just happened after a while, but I don't know. I really don't remember."

"Your memories are still hazy, too?" Mary Jane asked, taking on a more serious tone.

"Yeah," answered Peter. "I thought it was just the stuff about the past several months, but now it seems like years of my memories have gaps in them. I guess it has something to do with whatever huge, cosmic event messed with both of our memories before."

"This whole thing is just really, really weird," Mary Jane said with a worried tone. "I mean, I seem to remember a time recently when we weren't married, but that doesn't make any sense, because I also remember us being married for all these years, and I know that's what really happened...isn't it?"

"Yes," said Peter. "It is. It must be. I remember being with you this whole time...like, we just moved into this new apartment last month, and I remember that, but I also remember us not being married...it's like I have two different sets of memories, and neither of them are quite complete. There's something missing...something having to with Spider-Man, I'm pretty sure."

"I don't like this, Peter," Mary Jane said.

"I know," said Peter. "I don't like it either. But we'll figure it out. We have to. We always do, right?"  
"But...what if we don't?" Mary Jane asked.

Peter didn't have an answer. "Tell you what," he said. "Next time I see Spider-Man swinging around town, I'll wave him down and make sure I get some answers from him, okay?" Peter didn't sound very reassuring, probably because he didn't feel very reassured.

"Okay...that sounds great, Peter," Mary Jane said, trying not to sound worried even though she actually was. Concerned and no longer feeling romantic, she slowly pulled away from her husband's embrace.

"Good," said Peter. "Hey, do you want some breakfast? I made bacon and eggs. Sit down and I'll serve you some."

Peter proceeded to eat an uneventful breakfast with his wife, but the tension of the mysterious happenings in their lives hung heavily over everything they said.

***

Later that day, Peter grabbed his trusty camera, stepped outside, and began to walk. Mary Jane had left shortly earlier to run some errands—getting groceries and such, Peter assumed—and he had an errand to do as well. He had been so far unsuccessful in finding a new steady job (he wanted to go back to teaching, but was stuck until a position opened up at the high school), so in the meantime, he could always fall back on taking pictures of Spider-Man. He especially wanted to see Spider-Man today, in case the wall-crawler knew what the heck was up with his and Mary Jane's memories. If Spider-Man couldn't help, then Peter didn't know what he would do next, but he would cross that bridge when he got to it. Right now, his main objective was finding Spider-Man in the first place. That shouldn't be hard—he had done it so many times before. He would just have to—

Peter stopped and thought. How _was_ he going to find Spider-Man? For that matter, how had he always managed to find Spider-Man and get all those great pictures all those times in the past? Once again, to Peter's dismay, he couldn't remember. He remembered all the times that he had sold pictures to the _Daily Bugle_, but he didn't remember taking any of them, and he certainly didn't remember how he was always able to find Spider-Man each time. Did Peter have some sort of special friendship with Spider-Man? Did Spider-Man tip him off before he was about to show up somewhere? Why couldn't he remember? This was crazy, and it needed to be fixed—fast. All the more reason for Peter to find Spider-Man as soon as he possibly could.

"Hmm," Peter said to himself, trying to make light of the situation. "If I were Spider-Man, where would I be?" He tried to answer that question logically, but something inside his mind was somehow preventing him from imagining himself as Spider-Man. He tried again.

"Okay, well...what would Spider-Man be doing on a day like this?" Peter asked aloud. "I guess it depends on who you believe. Some people say that Spidey's a hero who fights crime, but people like Jolly Jonah always seem to think that he's a menace and a criminal himself. Either way, I guess he's usually around a crime in progress. The problem is that this is New York, where there are probably no fewer than six dozen crimes in progress at any given moment." Peter sighed.

He didn't know what to do, but he didn't want to give up yet. He got on one of the public buses and decided to just ride around town for a while, hoping and praying that he might happen to run in to Spider-Man—or at least something newsworthy, so he could take pictures and not make a total waste of the day. Maybe if he stopped at a place where there was likely to be a crime, he would get lucky and Spider-Man would show up. Peter eventually decided to get off at the bus stop a few blocks away from First National Bank, just in case there happened to be a robbery in progress.

Trying to ignore his distress and confusion, Peter walked down the sidewalk towards the bank, passing several buildings with obscure alleys behind them, but seeing no sign of crime. It was early afternoon, the sun was shining brightly, and it was entirely the wrong time of day for the sort of underhanded deals and deeds that usually took place in dark, obscure alleys. He approached the bank, dejected.

Suddenly, Peter felt the same strange tingling sensation which he had felt at breakfast this morning. A man wearing a ski mask and a dark jacket, holding a bag full of stolen money, was running right towards him.

Peter saw two security guards charge out of the bank, running desperately after the masked man. All of them were coming in his direction. There was no sign of Spider-Man, and if he didn't arrive soon, it would be too late. Peter was in a dangerous position and he didn't want to be hurt by the crook, but now that he had finally found a crime in progress, he didn't want to just stand by and do nothing, either.

"Hey!" one of the guards shouted at him. "Stop that guy!"

The thief was about to run right past Peter.

Peter stuck his leg out into the middle of the sidewalk.

Running at full momentum, the crook hit Peter's leg, tripped, and fell flat on his face on the rough pavement of the sidewalk.

For some reason, the whole thing felt slightly familiar to Peter.

Before the fallen thug could get back up, the security guards ran over, holding handcuffs and ready to apprehend the crook. "Thanks," one of them said to Peter. "He would've gotten away if you hadn't stopped him."

"Uh, no problem," Peter said, proud of himself but still a bit unnerved by the whole situation. "Hey, do you mind if I take a couple pictures? I'm a news photographer."

Peter took a few pictures of the guards arresting the thief and walked away with a slight sense of self-satisfaction about justice having been done. He got back on the bus and headed for home, but he hadn't found Spider-Man, and he still had no idea what was wrong with his memories. He was starting to get worried.

***

Mary Jane was not at the store shopping for groceries, as Peter had assumed. Instead, she was going to her local doctor.

This whole thing with all her conflicting memories was starting to really disturb Mary Jane, and she would have gone in for psychiatric help immediately if she thought it would fix the problem, but the fact that Peter was suffering from a similar crisis confirmed that it wasn't just in her own mind—it really must be some crazy cosmic catastrophe involving heroes and demons and Spider-Man, as far-fetched and unbelievable as that seemed. As much as she would like to get mental help of some sort from the doctor—or to just do anything that would somehow improve things—she couldn't, and so she had decided on the next best thing: she would take her mind off of the problem by going to the doctor for something else entirely, because she felt like she needed to anyway.

Even aside from the problems with her memory, Mary Jane had been feeling strange lately. She had only felt this way once before, years ago, and it had ended in such disappointment and sorrow that she hadn't wanted to get her hopes up again. But she was feeling it again now, and so she was going to the doctor to get it checked out. Maybe some good news, if there really was any, would brighten things up, despite the ever-growing mystery of her memories.

She walked into the doctor's office and sat in the waiting room for a while, impatiently leafing through an old magazine to which she paid no attention at all. Eventually, the doctor called her in and ran some tests. Mary Jane did some more waiting, and a little while after that, the doctor handed her a piece of paper.

"Congratulations," the doctor said.

Something in Mary Jane's soul brightened up.

***

Later, Peter walked through the door of his apartment and saw Mary Jane sitting on the couch, watching TV. She had a bowl of ice cream in her lap, an open jar of pickles with a fork hanging out of it on the end table next to the couch, and a glass of soda, which she gently sipped, in her right hand. "Hey, Peter," she said as he entered.

"Hey, Mary Jane," Peter said, glancing curiously at her choices of food. "Pickles and ice cream?" he asked. "Why, if I didn't know better, I'd think you were—" Peter stopped short, not daring to voice what he was thinking.

"What?" asked Mary Jane.

Peter grinned. "Crazy," he finished playfully. "I mean, what kind of a crazy combination is that, anyway?"

"Hey, don't knock it 'til you've tried it," Mary Jane retorted. An awkward silence ensued, and then Mary Jane asked, "So…did you find Spider-Man?"

Peter's shoulders sagged. "No," he admitted. "I didn't. I'll just have to keep looking, I guess."

"Oh," said Mary Jane, disappointed and not knowing how else to respond.

"We'll figure this out, Mary Jane," he said sympathetically.

She sighed. "I know we will, Peter."

Peter began walking toward their bedroom, worn out from his adventures and wanting to change into something more relaxing.

"Hey, Peter?" Mary Jane called. "I need to tell you something—"

"Hold on, honey," Peter called back, already in the next room. "Let me put my camera away and change out of these clothes."

"But it's—"

"Give me a minute, MJ," Peter replied. In the bedroom that he shared with his wife, Peter noticed that he had finished the current roll of film on his camera. He carefully took it out, put it in the small plastic canister to be developed, and then returned the camera to its usual place on the shelf in their closet. Peter threw the film canister onto the bedside table to remind himself to get it developed later, but he was absent-minded—still preoccupied with the mystery of his memories—and didn't take careful aim. The canister rolled off of the table, onto the floor, and under the bed.

"Oh, great," Peter mumbled to himself. "Wouldn't it be just my luck if that just ruined the film? Well, it's not like I had any great Spider-Man pictures on there anyway."

With a groan, he bent down, placing one hand on the wall and one on the floor, so he could look under the bed. Two things surprised him. First, for some reason, his hand almost seemed to stick to the wall as soon as he touched it, and it took a little more effort than it normally would for him to pull it away when he needed to. Secondly, though it was hard to make out under the bed, he noticed a wad of reddish cloth that he hadn't remembered seeing there before. Curious and temporarily forgetting about the film canister, Peter reached under the bed and pulled out the cloth to examine it more closely. Something heavy and metallic-sounding was dragging along with it as he pulled. "What is this?" Peter asked himself. He got the unknown item out from under the bed, stared at it for a few seconds, and then gasped.

"How in the world…?"

Mary Jane heard him from the other room. "Peter? Is everything okay?"

Peter looked down at the thin red tights he had found, decorated with portions of blue, a criss-cross web pattern, and the familiar insignia of a spider on the chest. A matching mask with two-way mirrors for the oversized eyes sat on top, and so did two circular metallic devices that looked like they could be worn on the wrists. With a million questions racing through his mind, Peter picked up one of the wrist-mounts and examined it with scientific curiosity. A little lever extended from the circular part, and when he pressed down on it, a thin strand of sticky web fluid shot suddenly out from the device and across the room, where it stuck to the wall.

"No way…" said Peter. Amazed and perplexed, he put the web-shooter down and stood up. "Hey, Mary Jane? I think you should come see this!"

He heard fast-paced footsteps as his wife rushed into the room. She, too, gasped upon seeing what Peter had found. "Peter, how—"

"I found it under our bed, Mary Jane," Peter explained honestly. "I have no idea how it got there."

"Under our bed?" she repeated incredulously, bending down to examine the costume for herself. "You found it just lying there?"

"Yes," said Peter. "I—I have no idea what it means."

"Well, what do you _think_ it means?" Mary Jane asked, becoming agitated at all these unexplained events. "It means he's been here. Somehow, sometime, for some unknown reason, Spider-Man has been here, in our apartment, and he decided to stash one of his spare costumes with us."

"Yeah…" said Peter, struggling to make sense of it all. The facts that Mary Jane had stated were obvious, but Peter couldn't think of a remotely reasonable explanation. His usual wit and eloquence with words failed him as he tried to come up with something. "Uh…maybe Spider-Man lives near here, and he needed to leave his costume somewhere so no one would find it."

"_We_ found it, Peter," Mary Jane reminded him. "And whatever motive Spider-Man had, or whatever good he may or may not have done for the city, that doesn't give him the right to break into private property whenever he wants to."

"You're right," Peter acknowledged. "I'm just trying to imagine why he would have done it."

"Peter…do you think maybe he was trying to frame you?" Mary Jane asked.

"Frame me?" Peter repeated. "For what?"

"I don't know. Lots of things. Isn't Spider-Man always running from the cops or having to clear his name of some robbery or murder? There are plenty of possibilities!"

"Come on, MJ, Spider-Man wouldn't do something like that," Peter protested, for some reason feeling like Spider-Man was still a good guy, even if he couldn't explain it.

"How do you know, Peter?" she asked him. "I mean, sure, you've taken pictures of him all these years, and I know you've seen him stop crimes and such, but how much do you really know about the man beneath the mask?"

"Well…not much," Peter admitted.

"That's right," Mary Jane said sternly. "He's not really the kind of guy you hang out with and get to know on the weekends. You have no idea what he'd do or why he'd do it. You can't rule out the possibility, at least."

Peter's heart sunk. "Maybe you're right," he admitted. "I don't remember ever even talking to him much. I never thought he was a criminal, but I guess I could be wrong." He paused to think a bit more, and then said, "I guess we should call the police or something, huh? This could be valuable evidence, after all."

"I think that's a good idea," Mary Jane said.

Reluctantly, his brain an even greater explosion of confusion than it had been before, Peter picked up the phone and dialed.

***

Wearing his civilian clothes instead of his Wolverine costume, Logan sat across the table from Luke Cage in the secret hideout of the unregistered New Avengers. Logan took a swig of beer, let out an enormous belch, and then grinned smugly at Cage. He held in his hand the four, five, six, seven, and eight of spades, facing towards him so that Cage couldn't see them. Cage picked up a couple cards from the deck, examined his hand, and then returned Logan's smug smile.

"You done?" Logan asked him.

"Yep," Cage said confidently.

Logan smacked his cards down face up on the table, spreading them out for Cage to see. "Straight!" he announced proudly. "Okay, whaddya got, Cage?"

"Oh, not much," Cage said sarcastically, laying out his cards on the table. Logan's mouth dropped open in dismay as he saw the ten, jack, queen, king, and ace of hearts all laid out in a row. "Just a royal flush."

Logan jumped up and pounded the table angrily. "You cheated!" he shouted.

"I won fair and square," Cage insisted. "Now where's that twenty bucks we had on this hand?"

"You ain't getting' money outta me for bein' a cheat," Wolverine shot back.

Angrily, Cage stood up to face him. "Logan, I did _not_ cheat!"

"You sure about that, bub?" Logan asked, clenching his fist.

The door opened and closed again. Both Logan and Cage looked and saw the regal-looking figure of Doctor Strange in his full magician attire enter the room. "Gentlemen," Strange addressed them skeptically.

"Uh…hey, great game, huh, Cage?" Logan managed, unclenching his fist and extending his hand to shake Luke's.

Cage ignored him. "What's up, Doc?" he asked of Strange.

"I am deeply concerned about something," Strange told them. "Tell me—have either of you seen or heard from Spider-Man lately?"

"Not me," said Cage.

"Nope," Logan agreed. "I haven't seen the webhead in weeks. I wonder where he's been? Ya think a guy could take the time to hang out with his teammates once in a while."

"Nor have I," Strange stated, "And I'm trying to figure out why. "I have some idea, but I need to investigate further."

"Investigate?" Logan repeated. "You don't think Spidey's been kidnapped or sumthin', do ya?"

"No," said Strange. "However, my powers have detected an unusual imbalance in the cosmic fabric of the space/time continuum as of late, and it seems to be dripping with Spider-Man's residual energy signature."

"Oh," said Logan. "Shoulda guessed."

"Tell me, do either of you remember a battle a few weeks ago?"

"Doc, I remember lotsa battles," Logan said.

"Can you be more specific, Doctor?" Cage asked, trying to be helpful.

"I seem to remember a battle in which we teamed up with the Fantastic Four to help Spider-Man battle a group of villains led by Mephisto," Doctor Strange explained. "But I remember it in another realm, as if it occurred in a separate thread of time. Do either of you know what I'm talking about?"

"Nope," said Logan. "Sorry, Doc."  
"Can't say that I do," Cage put in. "What are you getting at, Doctor?"

"I'm not sure," said Strange. "But something very unusual is going on. I know that much.

That's why I was wondering if either of you knew of Spider-Man's whereabouts, because I'd like to see if he knows enough to straighten this whole thing out."

"Didja try callin' him?" Logan asked facetiously.

"I am not in possession of Spider-Man's telephone number, nor even of his true name," Strange said. He looked up at his teammates once again. "I don't suppose either of you know his real name, either?"

The silence of Logan and Luke told Strange the answer to his question.

"I fear that something is very wrong here, especially if it involves Mephisto or changes to the space/time continuum," said Strange. "I feel that finding Spider-Man will be the key to the mystery, though it may be dangerous. If I were to set out in search of him, would you be interested in accompanying me?"

Logan shrugged. "Sure. Got nothin' better to do."

"How are you going to find him, though?" Cage inquired.

Strange lowered his head. "I don't like to use my power for this, but in this case, I'm not sure what option we have," he said. He spoke a series of magical words in some language totally foreign to both Logan and Luke. Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light, and an amazing sight appeared in front of the three men. Hanging in the air in giant, translucent letters were the words 'Peter Parker', and the image of the face of a plain-looking man with dark hair appeared directly beneath them.

"I think I've found our Spider-Man," Doctor Strange said.

***

A short while ago, a few NYPD officers had come into Peter and Mary Jane's apartment and carefully placed the Spider-Man costume and webshooters into a large bag, where they would be taken to the precinct to be studied. The rest of the room had been scoured for clues (with the Parkers' permission, of course), but nothing else had turned up. Now, one of the officers stood with Peter and Mary Jane in their bedroom, asking them questions.

"You just found this lying under your bed?" the man asked Peter.

"Yes," Peter confirmed.

"And you have no idea how it could have possibly gotten there?"

"No," said Peter.

"Has anything like this ever happened to you before?" the officer asked.

"Not that I remember," Peter said truthfully, since his memories were still incomplete.

"And I take it you have no idea who Spider-Man is," the officer said.

"None."

The officer scowled. "Has anyone else besides the two of you lived here recently, or is there anyone who visits frequently?"

"My elderly aunt comes by from time to time," Peter said, "Other than that...no."

Silently and with obvious frustration on his face, the officer scribbled some things onto his notepad.

"Thank you for your time, Mr. and Mrs. Parker," the officer said tersely. He handed Peter a business card with his name and number on it. "And remember to call us if you find anything else." He began to walk away.

"Of course," said Peter, who was still perplexed about the whole event. "Um, officer?"

He turned back around. "Yes?"

"You don't think Spider-Man would really try to frame me, do you? I mean, I know the police have encountered him a lot over the years, but isn't he usually fighting crime and trying to help people? Isn't he one of the good guys?"

The officer sighed. "I'm not qualified to say what Spider-Man is and isn't trying to do," he said. "But Spider-Man has had alleged involvement with more crimes than I can count over the years. At the very least, he's a vigilante in violation of the Superhuman Registration Act. He could be trying anything to escape detection, and it's my job to make sure he doesn't hurt anyone." Satisfied that his work at the Parker residence was done, the officer turned around and walked out the door.

"Told you," Mary Jane said to Peter, partly playful and partly glad that the officer had agreed with her.

"Yeah...you did," Peter acknowledged. "I admit, I could be wrong about Spider-Man. I don't know. There's not a whole lot that I know for certain right now."

"Me neither," Mary Jane said. "But you did the right thing in calling the police."

"I know," said Peter. "I'm just so confused right now." Not wanting to let the negative mood hang over them, Peter tried to balance it out with something positive. "But I'm glad I have you, Mary Jane. I'm so glad I have you." He put his arms around her and felt that beautiful, wonderful excitement once again. "One thing I'm _not_ confused about is that, as long as I have you, that's all that really matters."

"Thanks, Peter," Mary Jane said. "I know you're trying to make things better and to be sweet and romantic, and I appreciate it, but it's really not that simple. Yes, I'm thankful that we have each other, but things aren't right, and we both know it. Something is wrong with our memories, and even if it weren't, we just found out that a wanted criminal has been in our house. We're not any closer to answers than we were before, and it's driving me crazy. I feel insecure in my own home, Peter...I feel scared."

Peter sighed. "I know," he whispered. "I understand. To tell the truth, I feel the same way." He held her tighter. At this precise moment, Peter wanted more than anything to make things right, to protect Mary Jane at all costs, and to be able to fix things in any way possible. He wished he knew the answer to all of their questions, and he wished he could apply that answer to a solution to their problems, but he couldn't. The only thing he could offer his wife right now was a hug and vague promises that things would get better. He was powerless and he hated it.

"We'll get through this somehow," he said. It was cliche, empty, and overused, and he hated that he didn't have anything new to say. "I'm here for you, Mary Jane."

"I know you are, Peter," she said sadly. "But what if Spider-Man comes back? What if he tries to hurt us and you can't fight him? What will that mean for you and I and for our b—" She stopped in mid-sentence.

Peter waited for her to finish, and when she didn't, he asked, "What was that, honey?"

"Peter," she said. "There was something I needed to tell you earlier, remember?"

"Right!" said Peter, mentally kicking himself for forgetting all about that in the midst of the crisis with the Spider-Man costume. "Something important you needed to tell me. I'm listening."

On the other side of their apartment, the doorbell rang loudly. Mary Jane dropped her arms to her side in frustration.

"I guess we should go see who that is," Peter said. "But after this, I will hear whatever you have to say, Mary Jane. I promise." Peter walked over to the front door, followed closely by his dejected but curious wife.

Peter was met with a great surprise when he opened the door. Standing before him were three very extraordinary figures who he recognized from the news. On one side was the muscular, dark-skinned hero known as Luke Cage, and on the other was the tough mutant known as Wolverine. In the middle of those two stood the tall, cloaked, and bearded figure of the mysterious magician called Doctor Strange.

"Hello, Peter," said Doctor Strange. "May we come in?"

"Peter, what do they want?" Mary Jane asked him.

"I don't know," Peter whispered to her truthfully. "Go sit down, okay? Things could get dangerous."

Overhearing him, Doctor Strange said, "I assure you, we come in peace. Please, may we step in?"

"Mary Jane, I think these guys used to be Avengers," Peter whispered to her. "They really are the good guys and if they know Spider-Man, then they might be able to help us. If you don't feel safe, I'll tell them to go away, but—"

"No, Peter, it's okay," Mary Jane said, realizing the logic in her husband's words. "Invite them in."

"Sure," said Peter to Doctor Strange, feeling just as awkward and strange as his wife probably was. "Please, come in."

"Thank you," said Doctor Strange. The three superheroes entered the Parker apartment, and Peter, like any gracious host, seated them on the living room couch.

"Uh...can I get you gentlemen anything to drink?" Peter asked.

"Got any beer?" asked Logan.

Luke Cage punched him in the arm.

"No, thank you," Doctor Strange said. "Please sit down, Peter. We'd like to talk to you."

"Okay, sounds great!" Peter said nervously. He and Mary Jane sat down together on a loveseat across from the couch, holding each other close. Peter addressed his guests before they had a chance to speak. "So, I hope you don't mind my asking, but I'm really wondering if this is about Spider-Man, because I'm really confused about the whole Spider-Man thing right now."

"It is indeed," Strange told him.

"Yeah," said Cage. "We haven't seen you in a while, Peter."

Peter was confused. "You haven't seen me in a while? I don't think I've ever seen you in person before, Mr. Cage...it is Mr. Cage, right? I mean, I don't have superheroes visiting me very often."

"Look, Parker, you don't gotta pretend," Logan said gruffly. "We know who you are, okay? Don't worry, we ain't gonna tell anyone, but we know."

"What do you mean, you know who he is?" Mary Jane spoke up, concerned. "What are they talking about, Peter?"

Logan looked up, incredulous. "You mean even your _wife_ don't know who you are?"

"I'm sorry, but I honestly don't know what you're talking about," Peter told Logan.

"Peter, I know you weren't expecting us to know your identity, but we're your friends," said Cage. "If you're confused, let us help you. We're a team, and we always have been."

"Are you sure you don't have the wrong person?" Peter asked, growing more confused and concerned by the minute.

"Look, Webhead—" Logan began.

"Silence, Logan," Doctor Strange commanded. "He is being honest. I can sense it. He truly doesn't know."

Logan scratched his head. "So we _do_ have the wrong guy?"

"Not at all," said Strange. "Rather, he seems to have forgotten."

Peter's heart started beating faster with hope. "Forgotten _what?_" he asked. "There is a lot I haven't been able to remember lately. Are you saying you can help me, Doctor Strange?"

"Yes, Peter, I believe I can," the magician said. "But there's no easy way to say this, and so I sincerely hope all your memories will come rushing back once I do."

"Just tell me," Peter pleaded. "What is it that I can't remember?"

"Peter," said Doctor Strange. "You're Spider-Man."

Peter thought about it for a moment. Had Doctor Strange just called Peter Spider-Man? It was impossible. It was preposterous. It was unthinkable. It was crazy.

And then, suddenly, he remembered.

Just as Doctor Strange had hoped, the revelation of his own dual identity had triggered the release of all the other memories that Peter had reperessed, and a flood of recollections from so many years past began to flood over his mind. He remembered being in high school when he had been bitten by a radioactive spider. He remembered being selfish and failing Uncle Ben and resolving never to make the same mistake again. He remembered fighting the Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, the Sinister Six, and countless other villains. He remembered taking pictures of himself in action and selling then to the _Daily Bugle_. He remembered bonding with an alien symbiote, seeing Gwen Stacey die, meeting clones of himself, telling Mary Jane and Aunt May about his dual identity, unmasking and switching sides in the superhero Civil War, making a terrible deal with Mephisto, living without Mary Jane for a time, and fighting the final battle that had led him to this point. He remembered all of it.

"Mary Jane!" he exclaimed happily. "I remember! I remember it all! Do you?"

"Yes!" she shouted, equally joyful. "It all makes sense now. I remember it all. You've always been Spider-Man, and I love that about you." She gave him a huge, celebratory kiss on the cheek.

"Doc, thank you so much for coming here and telling me that," said Peter. "For the longest time I couldn't remember who I was, and I had no idea why! That's why you hadn't seen me with the New Avengers, because I haven't been Spider-Man at all lately!"

"Makes sense," said Logan. "But one thing I don't get. How the heck do you just 'forget' that you were Spider-Man?"

"I think I may have the answer to that," Doctor Strange spoke up. "Peter, do you remember the battle where we all defeated Mephisto together?"

"I sure do," said Peter. "I remember it all now!"

"So do I," said Strange. "But it's odd that we do, because if my theory is correct, it technically never happened—at least, not in _this_ timeline."

"That'd sure explain why I don't remember it," Logan said.

"Please explain, Doctor, I'm curious too," said Cage.

"Peter, this whole ordeal started when you made a deal with Mephisto to erase your marrigae in order to save the life of your aunt. Am I correct?"

"Well, technically it started before that," said Peter. "My aunt was shot because I unmasked myself during the Civil War and all my enemies knew who I was. But I know what you're saying. Go on."

"So, for a time, the space/time continuum was changed so that your marriage never occurred. But the Fantastic Four helped you find out what had happened, and you enlisted all of our help to fight Mephisto and put things back the way they were supposed to be. Do you remember that?"

"I do," said Peter.

"We _did_ put things back the way they were supposed to be, which is why you still have your marriage right now," Strange explained. "The original timeline was restored, and the time in which you weren't married, including our victory over Mephisto, is no longer part of this timeline."

"I think I follow you so far," said Peter. "But if that's the case and it never really happened, then why do we still remember it? In fact, why do I still remember _not _ being married to Mary Jane just as much as I remember being married to her?"

"I can't say for certain," Doctor Strange said. "I was able to perceive the differences in the timeline because of my connection to the spiritual world which transcends all dimensions. One possible explanation for your memories would be that, Mephisto, out of spite for being beaten and still wanting to make you suffer, intentionally made it so that your memories of not being married would stay with you, even though, in this timeline, you really have been married the whole time. After all, he relished in your unhappiness in the time you were apart. And at the final battle when you forced him to put everything back, you didn't make him agree to any condition saying that you didn't want to remember the time when you had been unhappily unmarried, did you?"

"No," said Peter. "Not that I remember."

"Right," said Doctor Strange. "I don't know for certain, but it's quite possible that Mephisto may have done something like that to you, just because he wanted you to always remember the time when you were unhappy and because you didn't say he couldn't. But one thing I _do_ remember you saying, since I was right there next to you, is that you wanted _no one_ to remember Spider-Man's identity. I assume you wanted to prevent this sort of thing from ever happening again, but did you really have to say _no one?_"

Peter thought back and realized the implications of what had happened. He wanted to kick himself. "Wow," he said. "Okay, I officially deserve the Biggest Idiot of All-Time Award."

Logan spoke up. "Well, I wasn't gonna say nuthin', but—"

Doctor Strange stepped on Logan's foot.

"I was so excited and angry and hasty to put things back the way they were that I forgot to specify the few people who _were_ supposed to know my secret identity, including myself and Mary Jane," Peter said. "And so Mephisto took that literally, which is why, even though we got the timeline back, our memories haven't been complete for these past couple of weeks."

"Precisely what I concluded," Doctor Strange confirmed.

"Mary Jane, I'm so sorry!" Peter told his wife sincerely. "All this time you were so afraid because you couldn't remember things correctly, and it was my fault all along! Can you forgive—"

"Relax, Tiger," she said, obviously in a much happier mood now. "It was an honest mistake, and things are better now. You beat him. You really beat Mephisto, and you got our marriage back. The only thing that matters is that we're together, right?"

"Right," Peter answered, kissing her affectionately on the lips.

Logan whispered to Cage across the couch. "How'd the webhead end up with such a hot babe, anyway?" Cage shrugged.

Doctor Strange stood. "Well, I don't want to stay too long, now that the matter has been resolved," he said. "But I expect that your teammates will be seeing more of you in the days to come, Peter?"

"Definitely, Doc," Peter said in between kisses. "Thanks for coming, and thanks for everything. Really, thank you so much. But I hope you don't mind showing yourselves out...I'm a little busy over here." He kissed Mary Jane again, and each touch of their lips felt new and fresh and exciting and rejuvenating and beautiful and amazing all at once. They finally had all their memories back, and they were together again for good.

"Man, all that cosmic space/time stuff sure makes my head hurt," Logan said. "I could sure go for a drink."

"See you around, Spider-Man," Cage said. "Or Peter, I guess I should say."

Luke Cage, Logan, and Doctor Strange exited the Parkers' apartment.

"So," Peter said to his wife once they were alone on the couch together. "We've got our memories back, our lives back, and our marriage back. What do you want to do?"

"Well—"

"How about an all-night, non-stop kissing marathon?" Peter suggested comically.

"Peter—"

"How about I take you out to dinner at a nice, fancy restaurant, and _then_ we come back here for the kissing marathon?"

"Peter—"

"How about I just keep kissing you and kissing you forever and ever and ever?"

Mary Jane giggled. "That does sound nice," she said. "But can we talk first? We really should talk."

"Of course," said Peter, who was in a happy, giddy mood. "I like talking, too. I talk all the time. Talk, talk, talk. So can you believe what just happened? Our marriage was messed with by an evil cosmic demon, and we _still_ came out on top?"

"That is pretty amazing, isn't it?" Mary Jane asked. "I'm so glad to be back with you now. I really wasn't happy when we weren't married."  
"I know," Peter said. "Neither was I."

"And I knew I wouldn't be," said Mary Jane. "Do you remember when we first made the deal with Mephisto? Did you see me whisper something to him?"

"Yeah, I did," said Peter. "What was up with that?"

"I knew that Spider-Man and all the people he helps were more important than my life and my happiness," Mary Jane said, speaking with difficulty about the unpleasant experience. "And I knew that you had to carry on being Spider-Man, no matter what, so I gave Mephisto an extra incentive. I told him that he could not only take our marriage, but my happiness as well."

Peter's eyes widened. "Mary Jane—"

"Don't try to take the blame or feel sorry for me, Peter," she said. "I knew what I was doing, and I did it for you, and for Spider-Man. But it's true. The whole time that I was away from you, I had a successful career, and a few boyfriends...but I really wasn't happy without you at all."

Peter was silent for a moment to let the words sink in. "Thank you, Mary Jane," he said at last. "Thank you for what you did and for what you gave up. I fight dangerous criminals all the time, and you're so much braver and better than I am. I love you."

She smiled. "I love you, too, Peter."

They both sat in silence for another few moments until the phone rang. Reluctantly, Peter got up from his wife's embrace to answer it.

"Hello?"

It was the officer who had been investigating their apartment just a short while earlier.

"Mr. Parker, I'm afraid we've got some bad news," he said.

"What is it?" Peter asked nervously.

"Our men at the precinct have examined the costume you found, and there it's given us few, if any, leads on Spider-Man. The only fingerprints they found all over the costume were yours."

Peter's heart sunk. "Mine?" he protested, fearing again for his recently reclaimed secret identity. "Why would my fingerprints be on the Spider-Man costume? What are you saying?"

"Calm down, Mr. Parker," said the officer. "No one's accusing you of anything. You did pull the costume out from under your bed and handle it for yourself before we arrived, right?"

A wave of relief swept over Peter. "Right! Of course I did!" he said. "That must be the only reason why my fingerprints are on the costume."

"Of course," said the officer. "But we haven't found anyone else's fingerprints. I guess Spider-Man is very careful, and he usually wears gloves. But we'll be watching your area for any further sign of him, and we'll let you know as soon as we find anything."

Peter wanted to kick himself again. "Great!" he said insincerely. "Thank you." He hung up and sat back down next to Mary Jane.

"What was that all about?" she asked.

Peter groaned. "Well, if you'll recall, the police have my Spider-Man costume, thanks to my big blunder in handing it over to them myself because I didn't know I was Spider-Man. And they'll be watching our area for any sightings of Spider-Man." He sighed. "Boy, if I had a nickel for every time my costume got lost or stolen, my secret identity was in trouble, and the police were on my tail. Good ol' Parker luck. I guess things really are back to normal."

"You'll get through it, Peter," Mary Jane assured him lovingly. "You always do, remember? You're Spider-Man. I'll sew you a new costume and you'll be Spider-Man again, and you'll help people and save lives regardless of what the cops or anyone throw at you, because that's who you are. It's what you have to do."

"Great power and great responsibility," Peter remarked, referring to Uncle Ben's old adage.

"Right," said Mary Jane. "But...I wouldn't say things are quite _exactly_ back to normal."

Peter thought for a second to figure out what she meant. "You're right!" he exclaimed. "Aunt May! She knew that I was Spider-Man before, and she deserves to know again. We'll have to go tell her everything so her memories will come back, too."

"Well, yes, I guess we should," Mary Jane said. "But I was talking about something else, something I've been trying to tell you. I've been trying to tell you the same thing all day!"

"Oh, right!" Peter said. "I keep forgetting in all this excitement. I'm sorry, Mary Jane. This time I really am listening, and if the doorbell rings or the phone rings or the house burns down three seconds from now, I'm not going to do anything until I've listened to what you've been trying to tell me. So please, go ahead."

"All right," Mary Jane said. "Now that I have all my memories back, I think I can explain it better, anyway. Peter...even though we have two sets of memories, we really have been married all these months, and that means we've slept together for all these months too, right?"

"Well, yeah, of course," said Peter. "What does—"

"She interrupted him. "And do you remember when we first made that deal with Mephisto, and he showed us our daughter who he had brought backward from the future, who we would still be able to have as long as we stayed married?"

"Yes, I do," said Peter, realization dawning on him. "Mary Jane, are you saying—"

"Peter, I went to the doctor today," she said. "I'm pregnant!"

Peter was speechless with surprise and delight. "Mary Jane, that's—that's—" He didn't know what to say, so he just threw his arms around her and began kissing her again. It never got old. "Thats wonderful," he eventually managed.

"It's so wonderful," she agreed. "I've wanted a child for so long, and now this, combined with getting you back again...I'm so happy, it's almost overwhelming." Tears of joy began to stream down Mary Jane's face.

Peter put his hand to his wife's face and gently wiped away her tears. "I love you, Mary Jane Watson," he said. "I'm so thankful that you're my wife."

She smiled that beautiful smile that had captured Peter's heart the first time he had ever seen it. "I love you too, Peter Parker. I love you so much."

"Hey," Peter said. "All this calls for some celebration. How about we go get Aunt May and I take you both out to dinner tonight? After all, between you being pregnant and me being Spider-Man, we've _really_ got a lot to tell her!"

"And when we get back, we can have that all-night kissing marathon you mentioned," Mary Jane suggested.

"Don't have to tell me twice!" Peter exclaimed happily. "That sounds like an amazing idea."

They walked out of the apartment together hand-in-hand, heart-in-heart, deeply and truly in love, looking forward to the newly rediscovered life they would share as Peter and Mary Jane Parker, husband and wife, expecting parents, and two of the only people in the world who knew the startling secret of the amazing Spider-Man.

**The End!**

_**References:**_

_When writing this chapter, I had to wonder where Peter and Mary Jane would be living now that they are back together. There house was destroyed in _Amazing Spider-Man _#518, after which Tony Stark allowed them to move into an apartment in Stark Tower, since Spider-Man was part of the New Avengers. However, because of the falling out between Peter and Tony during _Civil War_ and Tony's fall from power after _Secret Invasion_, I assumed that, if Peter and Mary Jane were to have been married that entire time, they would no longer be living in Stark Tower. Therefore, as of this chapter, they have recently (shortly after _Secret Invasion_) moved into a new apartment, as Peter mentioned, until they can save up enough money for a new house. Along the same lines, I wondered about Peter's current job, since he become Tony Stark's personal photographer in _Amazing Spider-Man _#524, but is no longer with Tony Stark. As of this chapter, Peter has been doing odd jobs and is thinking of returning to taking pictures of Spider-Man unless and until he can back to the teaching job that he had before joining Tony Stark._

_Doctor Strange revealed to Spider-Man in _The Amazing Spider-Man vol. 5: The Life and Death of Spiders TPB _(I forget which specific issue) that he, being a Sorceror Supreme, had the power to magically learn Spider-Man's secret identity, and to do so by making his name appear in big flashing letters if he so chose. _

_I wanted to have Peter and Mary Jane still remember the events of _Brand New Day_ because that period contained several new characters and relevant events of Spider-Man's recent history, and I figured one last spiteful act from Mephisto would be a good way to include that._

_The original deal between Peter, Mary Jane, and Mephisto, in which Mary Jane whispered something secretly to Mephisto, took place in _Amazing Spider-Man #545.

_Aunt May learned of Peter's dual identity in _Amazing Spider-Man _#478._

Amazing Spider-Man _#591 explained that the mental blocks that caused Peter and others to forget Spider-Man's identity can be easily broken with one piece of information, after which all related memories come flooding back in all at once._

_Mephisto showed Peter his future daughter in _Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man _#24 and _Sensational Spider-Man _vol. 2 #41._

_Mary Jane was pregnant once before during the Spider-Man Clone Saga of the 1990s, but the baby ended up being stillborn._

_Author's Note: Though I've said it already, I'll say it again as I wrap this up: many, many thanks to all of you who have read and enjoyed and commented on this story. I was very happy to be able to write it, to work with such real and enjoyable characters, and to see Peter and Mary Jane ending up so happy together in the end. The whole thing was a blessing to write and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Even though this story is over, may it never be the end for Peter and Mary Jane Parker._


End file.
